And Still, I Begged For More
by loversinlima
Summary: Emma thought, well knew, she was done with Will. And he couldnt let go, no matter how hard he tried. Now more than ever, she begins to realize she might be the one in need of some guidance and Will won't be hesitant to help her out.  bad summary xP Wemma
1. From the Top

Hey guys! Well this is my first time writing a fanfic in a while, and my first time writing a Glee one a matter of fact. I just started watching it last week, and in the matter of a weekend finished the whole series lol one because it was so good, and two because I really, really, like the whole Wemma relationship. So in between re watching episodes, I began to conjure up thoughts for a fanfic about it. Hope you like and please, please review; especially with suggestions, cause I am thinking of adding some Holly into it, but wasn't sure what you would wanna read about, so enjoy! :D

**Disclamer:** I do not own Glee or anything related to it

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**Chapter 1: From the Top!**

Emma had been fixing the little things on her desk, as usual, making sure they were lined up precisely. Her mysophobia was getting better with the help of Dr. Carl Howell, but still, things were changing way too much. She needed something to hold on to. Something that kept her stable, and no matter how much of a mess her life was, everything around her, at the least, could be clean. She heard three, quiet knocks on the cold metal surrounding her doorway. All around her was glass, so she could easily see who was stopping by, someone she _didn't_ expect.

It was Will. They hadn't talked in the longest. Their relationship started to go downhill, once she revealed the heartbreaking news to him of her boyfriend, Carl. He tried so hard, to win her back, but she had already decided they had their chance, and wouldn't be easily swayed back in, no matter how tempting Will Schuster may have been singing toxic, or being a prop in her rendition of Touch A Touch Me. Since then, she got married to Carl, and nothing was the same- except for how Will still felt about her. A matter a fact, he felt even stronger about Emma after realizing what it was like not having her in his life. Having to see her joy, with another guy, who _didn't_ deserve her love.

"Hey Em… I know it's been a long time since I stopped by and-"

"Hi Will, what can I do for you?" She said smiling, however he couldn't read if it was sincere or just masking the tension between them. Emma was so straight forward with him now, even with the drunk dial being played all over the school, about how he loved the way her plastic gloves crinkled in the faculty room. Slowly, he walked in with a nervous look on his face. There she was, with her bright yellow cardigan, and pencil skirt hidden behind the desk between them. Only thing was- there was more than a desk stopping them.

"Well… I'm in the need for some, guidance." He remembered how much they used to talk, about personal problems. That was one of things he missed the most, having someone to confide to about his problems. Emma clasped her hands together on the organized desk and nodded.

Will sighed and got to the point. "Look. I have this friend and well- I don't even know if we are friends actually anymore. I have no clue where we stand, and it's killing me inside." His face was torn, full of emotions and regrets, of his past actions. And well, if he hadn't made those ignorant mistakes, things would be different.

"And you want my help?" She looked at him, biting her bottom lip. "Could you, um, tell me who this friend is?"

Clenching his fist, Will took a deep breath out of frustration. "You know Emma! Can we stop acting like strangers? I know you have moved on but…" Just the thought of her slowly drifting away from him was hard, but actually saying it made him sick to his stomach. He still had a place in his heart for _her_, even if the feeling wasn't mutual. "I- I never thought you'd stop being the one _true_ friend I have."

He began to choke on his own words, whether it was his ride that he gave away to her so easily, or just reality taking its toll. After pondering his own thoughts, he looked up to find Emma, turned away from him. She had her eyes closed, hiding her emotions so well, like she normally did for the sake of not starting anything between them. Realizing how he must have sounded, he sighed and leaned in towards her.

"I'm sorry Emma. It's just… I miss how things used to be, you know, as friends. The one I always came to for help, the one who was Glee Club's biggest fan, the one who was there if I ever just wanted to chat." With that, he caught her attention, looking her right in the eyes. "I know things have been really awkward between us, but please... please say something so I understand."

Her eyes got real wide, as she began to blink. She responded with sincerity, for the first time in as long as she could remember, "I- I don't know what to say Will. You're … right I suppose." She gave him a half smile, like she used to. It made him happier than she knew though. It was weird now, with the positions switched. Before, Emma was fawning over Will, but now he is fawning over her, and they both knew that, as much as they denied _it_.

"So, um, what do you want from me?"

Will buried his face into the palm of his hands and let out a sigh of relief. He raised his eyebrows and responded. "Well, that was a start!" He laughed slightly, still not on a total kick of joy, for _they_ had a long way to go. "How about we eat lunch together or something… like we used to?"

Every word he said was hesitant and shaky. He wanted so bad for this time around to work, with no strings attached; for now at least. Point blank, he needed her, she couldn't know that so easily though. No matter how flattering, it would make him look like and idiot, when it was obvious she wasn't worried about him anymore. Awaiting for an answer, he loosened his tie and fixed his silky vest. The nervousness was starting to get to him. He felt sweat starting to build on his forehead, not to mention it was kind of hot in there.

Emma wasn't so sure about that. Was this one of his attempts to_ reel_ her in, like so many other times? She'd hate to disappoint him though, even though he broke her heart before. Then again, she was doing the same to him, but not to hurt him or anything like that. She needed to move on, at least that's what she told herself, and Carl gave her a sense of protection. Work was getting a little lonely though, maybe a friendly relationship with Will, wouldn't be so hard to manage. Ah, what the heck. She nodded her head, as she squirted hand sanitizer into her hands.

"That sounds-" Her face soon turned into one of awe, as she jumped up in her seat. Will was even more dumbfounded.

"Did I say something wrong?" That's when he realized that she wasn't even looking at him, she was looking at the door way. Cautiously, he turned around to see a young man, in a dentist uniform. It was Carl, the man he _hated_ the most. He turned back around and slummed his shoulders, sliding into the chair, looking at the ground.

"Carl! What- are _you _doing here?" Emma felt the need to break the tension that was rising. He winked at her and smiled and his charm that had first caught Emma's eye when he asked her out.

"Well, my patient cancelled their root canal, so I thought I'd visit _my_ girl." He spoke with a hint of spite, and with a smirk on his faced, turned his attention to Will, who was trying hard to keep from saying anything.

When he spoke, you could tell how much he resented to act cool with Will. The feeling was mutual, but for the sake of Emma, he greeted him. "Hey Bro… long time no see!"

With that, and endless exchange of looks began between Emma and Will and back to Carl, leaving everyone dizzy and confused.

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_The end..._

So uh, thats it! I usually write long chapters, but I tend to get a little boring, but if you want longer reads just lemme know. However at this rate, I can get up at least 2 chapters, maybe 3 a week. Btw, I come up with stuff as a write, but I always have an idea of what I wanna do next, and next chapter will be some Will and Carl tension lol and maayyybee some Wemma development. Thanks for reading xD


	2. Wake Up Call

_Eeek, I had a really hard time with this chapter xD I dont this story to be so fast paced, but more of a innocent growth with the whole Wemma thing, so hopefully its interesting enough. Thanks so much to the people who reviewed! I posted the first chapter before I went to sleep and when I checked in the morning and so what people wrote, it made me feel good (: Well, here goes chapter two, hope you like it! _

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**Chapter 2: Wake Up Call**

This was a nightmare. As much as he hoped for things to go smoothing sailing, it was the complete opposite. Why did he have to show up, now of all times. Maybe there was some force, in between him and Emma, you know, pushing them apart with all its might. Will placed his fist in front of his mouth and cleared his throat.

"Carl, it's been a _very_ long time." He looked over his shoulder, at the dentist and bit his tongue. He wanted so badly, just to connect his fist with Carl's face, but that would be wrong, like every other choice he made apparently.

"Schuester, I didn't expect to see you in here." Carl said, as he walked towards Emma desk, placing a hand on her shoulder, and kissing her on the forehead for one reason or another. Will turned his head as quickly as possible and got up out of his seat. Slowly, he made his way to the glass windows, with his hands in his pocket.

"Haha, well I guess you thought wrong. I mean, it is my workplace, Carl."

He chuckled at Will's words. "Fair enough, bro. Since it's your job and all, how about keeping it, you know; professional maybe?"

"And what's that supposed to mean?" He snapped back. Clearly Will's face was getting red, as he tried to hold in his anger, especially front of Emma, who was just sitting there, with her eyes closed, not wanting to join the conflict.

"Um, okay guys. How's about we all just… relax-"

Will cut her off, "No need for that Emma, I think that- I should be going." He looked at her with sadness in his eyes. Actually, he was waiting, or hoping, for her to say, 'Don't go Will' or 'No, no. Just stay' but she didn't. It was like a blow to him, one that made him want to leave and never come back. Thing was, that would be much harder than he thought it would be. It has been a month since the two were married, but you know what they say; the farther apart you are, makes you even closer.

Carl couldn't agree more. Breaking the silence, he chimed in. "Now if you could excuse us?"

Will glared at him, and then gave Emma one more, longing look, with his eyes on the verge of bursting into tears. She didn't look back though; she was looking at the ground. Will nodded and quickly made his exit from the office into the empty hallway. He made a sharp turn around the corner, placing his head against the wall, and felt a tear stream down his face, composed of many feelings and emotions.

"So, what did he want, Emma?" Carl shut the door to the office, and leaned against it. Emma looked at him, wide eyed. His arrogance was the one thing she couldn't stand most about him. And now that they were married and all, it was just on a whole different level of ego.

"Oh, nothing Carl. He was just- just asking about, songs for the glee club, you know, stuff they could sing." She was a horrible liar, but they had a trust thing going on their relationship. Not they she lied on a regular basis, but he believed her almost all the time, as far as she knew. Emma slid her fingers into her hair, and pulled it back behind her ear. Carl shrugged his shoulders, pondering for a moment.

"Okay. I mean, the staff at McKinley is pretty big though, I'm sure there are other teachers around he could ask." He added, trying to make a point. Emma nodded, in agreement for the sake of saving an argument. It was hard though, because Carl didn't let things slide.

"I know, but um, you know how important to me those kids are. Will coming to me did no harm, contrary to your belief." She bit her lip and smiled. "We're just friends, that's it. He understands that, you made that perfectly clear your last visit." Thoughts of Will and hers conversation in the auditorium after the kids put on Rocky Horror popped up in her mind. He was sincere, and really understanding about she felt about Carl, and was sure he wouldn't try to interfere anymore.

"You're right babe. I'm sorry, it' just, you know how I feel about you and him." Carl had a way with words, a way that made Emma never mad at him, no matter how over bearing he may have been. "Please, just don't make your little meetings, a regular."

Emma nodded, even if she disagreed. Quickly, he made his way over to Emma and kissed her gently. "I should probably get going; you know how busy the commute to the office can be. I love you, Emma, more than anyone or anything in the world."

"I- I love you too."

They smiled at each other, as he made his exit. She watched him as he got into his shiny corvette out of the parking lot. That confrontation really had her thinking. As much as she was on Carl's side, that wasn't really right. Will had only good intentions talking to her, right? Emma got up out of her chair, and left her office. Her signature Mary Jane's clicked and clacked down the halls of McKinley, as she made her way to Will's office. She cracked the door open, to find him grading papers, in the dark, as usual. It must have gotten boring, but he had nothing else to do in his spare time.

"Hi, Will" She said sheepishly and subtle, however grabbing his attention with ease.

"Emma.."

"Can I come in?" Emma asked as politely as she could, fixing her pencil skirt. He nodded his head solemnly. Normally, he would have a smile on his face whenever she graced him with her presence, but not this time. She didn't bother to sit down, figuring this would be brief.

"I um, came to apologize. I'm sorry about Carl showing up and-"

Will stood up and slid his chair in. He let out a deep breath and cut her off. "It's- It's alright, to start with C- Carl, was none of my business. Too be honest though, I still don't like him, no matter how much you want me to, I just can't." He looked at her, and then turned his head, not wanting to look her in the eyes, not knowing what she would say next. Emma clasped her hands together and licked her lip, not knowing how to respond to that. Automatically though, she got really defensive.

"I know how you feel Will… but Carl, he has helped me a lot, with my problems, at least respect that much- for me." She let out a small, friendly smile. He still wasn't looking at her. Will loosened his collar a bit, and shook his head.

"You know what? Maybe you're right. A matter fact, I couldn't agree more as much as I don't want to. But what I disagree with, is the fact that he treats you- treats you like some trophy for it." Will said with as much heart as he could muster up, without getting angry. It was true, and he couldn't stand it. It wasn't just the fact that he acted that way, but that Emma let him. She was stronger than that. She proved that when she called him a 'slut' in front of the entire faculty.

Emma was startled by what Will just said. It hit her like a ton of bricks. She didn't know what to think.

"That's not fair!" Were the first words that came out of her mouth. She could have ranted about how insincere Will was being saying that, but she didn't. She didn't because no matter how much she wanted to argue, she couldn't. Even though there wasn't much time to let it sink in, she knew, that he was telling the truth. Would it be wrong to tell him that, he was right? No. Wait, yes, it would. That would be going against Carl. She didn't want to do that though, she couldn't.

Will looked at her, disappointed, that she was so easy to defend Carl. It didn't make sense; it made no sense at all. He had to find out, what she really thought, even if she didn't want to admit it herself. Now wasn't the time though, he didn't want to make things worse between them. Will walked passed her and to the door, pushing it open.

He gulped, and spoke with no emotion on his face. "If you don't mind, I need to get back to those papers." Emma turned around, with her hands still firmly together and made her way to the door with her head down. As she approached the door way, she looked up at Will, who looked back at her, in her deep brown eyes, and frowned. They had shared so many of those looks over the past year, but this one was different. After a couple seconds, she closed her eyes, and made her way out, feeling like a sinking ship. She was wrong, and pushing Will away didn't make her anymore right. Will had always been so quick to put down his pride for Emma, and now it was her turn. She didn't know how, but she wouldmake it right.

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_Phew... now I dont know if you have noticed, but titles aren't really my thing, but I chose "Wake Up Call" because well, she is realizing something that she hasn't before lol I will try to have the next chapter up Friday, no later than Staurday. Please Review and ideas are welcomed to! And if you really through the obstacles, you'll see that this is just making Will and Emma stronger for all you Wemma shippers that might be worried about where this is going haha but you guys wont be disappointed next chapter ^^_

_See ya!_


	3. A New Direction

_Hellooo guys! I really wanna say how much I appreciate people taking the time to read the story and leaving reviews on their way out, it gives me motivation! I got done this chapter easier than I thought luckily and I am happy with how it turned out sooo that's a good thing, but please, please make sure you lemme know if I can do better with anything, cause I'd like that ^^ Enjoy!_

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**Chapter 3: New Direction**

It was the next day, and Emma hadn't seen Will at all since the incident in his office had occurred. Not that she was a great sleeper, but she thought about it all night. She thought about how much Will probably had it on his mind too. He must have taken it worse, because that's just how he was. On the other hand, if Emma acted any type of way, Carl would know something was up. If he questioned her, she would have cracked eventually, considering their 'Honesty Policy'. That didn't really matter right now though. It was lunch time, the time of the day that both her and Will had their break. Emma entered the teachers' lounge, and saw Will indulgent in his papers. Discreetly, she inched her way over to his table, and pulled out a chair. The sound of it rubbing against the floor caused Will to look up. He saw her there, with a sincere smile on her face, as she took a seat. She was wearing her periwinkle cardigan. It was the one she had on when she purposely bumped into Will in the hall last year. Funny thing was, now they are purposely staying away from each other.

"Emma? What's up?"

As he spoke to her, she was digging into her deep bag, pulling out plastic containers and wipes.

"I am just accepting your offer, Will." He looked at her strangely, completely lost, but amused at the same time.

"Wait, what offer? I don't think I- understand."

"Lunch." Emma said with an innocent look. Placing on hand on a clear square container, she peeled off the lid, placing it on the table, and took out a sandwich. "Wanna go halfsies on some PB&J?" Emma began to lightly rip apart the sandwich that was already cut on a perfect angle before he could even answer. Will extended his arm toward her, taking one half of the sandwich. He began to examine it, noticing something.

"You- you cut the crust off. I thought, you forget to do that now?"

"I know; I hope that's not a problem, Will."

He looked at her and smiled gently, taking a bit out of the perfect sandwich. Shaking his head, he assured it her it was fine. "No, no, not at all. It's great, really- great." As he took wholesome chews of the sandwich, he thought back to the first real time him and Emma spent time together. It was at Vocal Adrenaline's showcase; who knew sharing lunch would bring them so far. This time around, the irony made it even more sweeter. For a few minutes, there was silence between them. It was a very awkward silence, not really doing anything for either of them.

"Sorry about being so quiet Em… It's just that I am trying to get some song ideas for regionals and-"

"Regionals?" Emma looked at him wide eyed. This was the first time, he_ didn't_ ask her to come see the Glee kids perform. That wasn't good at all. Will tilted his head and nodded.

"Yeah, they are this Saturday. I have been so pre-occupied, with everything, I kind of neglected my responsibilities to the kids."

"Wh- What's been pre-occupying you Will?" She asked curiously. She didn't expect an answer from him, but they was no harm in asking.

He sighed, looking at her with deep eyes. "Nothing.." Emma knew he was lying. She knew exactly what his problem was, and she couldn't blame him.

"Will, you don't have to lie. That's actually what I came here for."

"Really?" He responded, very surprised. He had known Emma for a while, and hadn't really seen her face anything up front, by her own will. He really respected her at that moment. Not only that, he was glad. Glad that she was being open with him, rather than hiding _everything_ she felt.

Emma took a deep breath before explaining how she felt. "I was really thinking about, what you said. You know, being a- a trophy wife. And, you're right, Will. I guess I was so swept up how much he cared for me, and how much I cared for-" No, Emma Pillsbury; do not go there with Will. He gets really sensitive about her and Carl, right? She knew she had to be careful with her words, and stopped herself before going any further.

"So, now that you mentioned Regionals, I was thinking maybe.."

For the first time in their conversation, Will felt something good. He wasn't a mind reader by any stretch of the imagination, hell, he was unsure about his thoughts too, but it was clear where she was getting at.

"Maybe, what?"

"That I- would join you guys. I want to be there, to support the kids-"

"But what about, you know, Carl?" Will mentioned abruptly, getting quitter as he said his name as if Carl were listening in on the whole conversation. He knew how possessive he was, and he would never let Emma go, just for the _mere_ reason that she would be going with _him_. Then again, she would only be going to cheer on the kids, right? As much as he had to deal with it, that was all it would be, nothing more. He thought back to regionals, last year. The kids did so well, and they lost, thanks to Sue he was pretty sure. Then, when he saw Emma arguing with Figgins, he asked her why, and she said:

'_Some things are worth fighting for!'_

'_You mean like the kids?'_

'_Yes Will, the kids. This is not about us.'_

Did that still apply? He hadn't really been very optimistic when it came their relationship. He would have to wait to find out the answer, for only time would tell. But did he have to be a sitting duck?

Emma gulped, and looked at Will confidently. "Carl- is going to have to understand. It's time I start- start saying how I feel, and doing what I feel, without anyone holding me back." She let out a chuckle, feeling good about herself for once. She wanted to change, for herself, and for everyone else. It was time to stop being such a push over, and she now realized that.

Will smiled at her, knowing this was big step for her, and knowing he was partially the reason she was ready to move ahead. It was him, and not Carl, helping her this time around. "Good, that's sounds really good." Emma smiled back, as she stood up. He saw she had already cleaned up her belongings, most likely while he was in his train of thought.

"Thank you- Will." She said quietly as she picked up her things. As she left the table, she walked by him, brushing her hand on his shoulder, along his silky smooth vest. Will dared not to look at her, not wanting Emma to see, his eyes, which showed perfectly clear his emotions, emotions that sent chills through his body. He felt Emma, close to him, for the first time in a while. It was something that made him so happy, but so sad for it was only for the moment. He looked up, when he saw her about to leave out of the corner of his eye.

"Emma!" He said, smiling softly. She looked turned to look at him, as he finished what he had to say. "Thanks for the sandwich, it was- the best, I ever had." Emma nodded, feeling some weird way about that. Slowly, she turned back around, and out of the door. When out of sight, she fluttered her eye lashes, and brushed her hair behind her ear, keeping her hand there, letting what just happen sink in. She felt her face get flushed, letting out a huge smile as made her way down the hall.

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Emma pulled into the parking lot of her apartment with Carl, and got out of her car in full stride. She entered the number that would unlock the doors, and made her way up the stairwell. She reached out her hand, placing it on the doorknob. Before turning it completely, she let out a huge breath. With a serious look on her face, she walked in to find Carl, sitting on the couch, ready to greet her.

"Emma! How was your day?" He said, with a smile full of perfect, shiny teeth that could light up a room. Emma walked towards him, and replied more or less enthusiastically. "Just Fine, Carl."

He met her halfway, placing a hand on her shoulder, moving in close. "What wrong, babe?" Emma closed her eyes and relaxed, as nicely slid his hand of her.

"I um- wanted to ask; No, actually I am telling you… that I- that this Saturday, the Glee Club had regionals and-"

Carl frowned, as he took two steps back. "And you want to go?" He felt anger build up inside of him and laughed hysterically, not believing what she was asking, knowing how he felt.

"Yes. Yes I do, and I want you to respect that; respect something that I- really want to do, for the kids." She said very hesitantly, but firmly stating her view on the situation. Carl looked her in the eyes, and bit his tongue, not knowing what to say, for the _first_ time in their relationship.

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_Hope you liked the chapter :) plus, plus, plus for Wemma. Next chapter, it will be more than Emma, Will, and Carl dialog lol the glee kids will be in the next chapter or two, so it should be more 'fun' rather than so straight foward. Please review, they are like food to my soul and without them,I kind of feel empty inside xD and I hope you read the next chapter. thanks for the support!_


	4. Flushed Feelings

_I really am feeling good about this story... this is the first time I have gotten anywhere with a fanfic lol so thanks for the continued support from the reviews, and the people who have added this story to their alerts! I made this chapter a little longer, so _

_stuff could actually happen, and I tried in cooperating some other characters, so sorry if they aren't always in character but I think i did fine. enjoy :)_

_~Cheena_

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**Chapter 4: Flushed Feelings**

Today was make it or break it. Before any of them knew it, Regionals was here. Now, if they didn't place this time around, Glee would be done for good. They wanted to score a little higher though, like actually winning. More than anything, they wanted to get to Nationals. Will had also shared the same passion, if not more as the kids. He remembered back to his glory days, when he and the rest of the McKinley Glee Club took Nationals in 1993. Oh, everything was so perfect then. Now, besides trying to get somewhere with regionals, he wanted to get somewhere with Emma. He knew his boundaries though, and crossing them would be really, really bad. For now, he could only hope to get their friendship back in order, at the least. If it were to go any further, that would have to be up to Emma. Chances of that were slim, but he couldn't let go of that hope. If not today, maybe someday he would have her back.

"Yo, Mr. Schue! What are we waiting for?"

Breaking from his train of thought, he turned to Puck who obviously was tired of waiting, and ready to go. He couldn't blame him though, because most likely the rest of the Glee clubbers were anxious to get on the road, and so was he.

"Sorry guys, we have to wait for our other chaperone, I'm sure it won't be long-" The sound of car motor crept up behind him. An older, blue car pulled into a parking space relatively close to the bus that they would be boarding. The ignition went off, and a red haired guidance counselor stepped out of vehicle, softly closing the door behind her.

"Hey Mrs.P!" and "Mrs. Pillsbury!" erupted from the crowd of glee kids. They knew how much fond she was of the club, and it was kind of obvious that their instructor was fond of her, so they welcomed Emma with open arms. She grinned widely, waving her hand franticly at the bunch. She had on a ruffled blouse with a bright yellow unbuttoned sweater, and a white pencil skirt. Most noticeable, where her yellow heels, which Will had shined for her, months ago, and they hadn't looked any different. Her stared at out her heavily, before making his way over to her.

"Emma, you look- great."

"Thanks, you too Will." He looked down at his attire, it was the same as usual; a dress shirt, covered by a vest and kakis. This time though, he was wearing a periwinkle tie, her favorite color.

After greeting her kindly, he beckoned her to follow him towards the rest of the Glee club. They stopped in front of the kids, as Will grabbed their attention.

"Well, you have probably figured out it by now, but-" Will slowly raised his arm, placing on Emma's shoulders, who was trying hard to not lean in _too_ close. "Mrs. Pillsbury… Howell, is going to accompany us as a chaperone for regionals. I expect you guys not be a problem, but you know Figgins-" Oh, did he hate her knew last name...

"Damn, Mr Schue… you really are whipped."

Emma's eyes widened, as she got really tense. Will quickly remove his arm from his shoulders and took a step to the side.

"Noah!" Rachel extended her arm, back slapping Puck on the arm, who sucked his teeth.

"Well, it's true."

"Right, um, mind if I, you know, continue?" Will interrupted, not wanting the conversation to continue. In his mind, he was thinking, _'this isn't going too well…' _He glanced over at Emma, who was looking at the ground, probably embarrassed as he was. Puck nodded sarcastically, backing into the group, not saying anything else.

Will made his way over to the doors of the bus, and asked the bus driver to open them. This time around, they had a nice, coach bus that was given as thanks from the local hospital that Will sang at each month. The kids were ecstatic about it, and Emma would always be happy knowing it was cleaner than those school's buses.

"Anyway, like I was saying, don't screw up. It's a two hour bus ride, and I know how anxious you all can get." He heard laughter from the group, glad to hear that for once, they were all on good terms during competition time. "Now get on the bus! We have regionals to win!" He sounded more confident than ever before and it rubbed off on the group for sure. Quickly, they all began to crowd in front of the door, walking on the bus one at a time. Emma followed behind them, patiently, waiting for her turn. As she was about to take her first step on the bus, Will reached his hand blocking her way.

"Look, Em… I'm really glad you could make it."

She looked up at Will, smiling shyly and nodded. Feeling gentleman like, he leaned over, placing one hand on his stomach, and the other in the direction of the bus, granting Emma access. Quickly, she tiptoed her way up the small staircase, looking for a seat behind the kids. Will followed behind her, releasing a sigh before sitting in the aisle across from her. He sat uncomfortably as he watched her start to wipe the handle on the back of the seat in front of her.

"Sorry, I know this isn't much of a stretch from public transportation, Emma." Will said, trying to spark a conversation between the two.

Quickly, she stopped what she was doing slowly moving her hand away from the bar. Her OCD was getting better, but it still took over at times. "Um, no.. no, it's uh- I can handle it."

Will pressed his head back, letting out a laugh at her sudden need to control her habit. He thought it was cute, but he wasn't going to say that out loud. "I didn't mean it like that. Go ahead; keep cleaning it if that's what makes you comfortable."

Emma scratched the back of her neck, pondering for a moment. _'That was pretty nice of him to care about..' _Around him, she didn't have to feel embarrassed about her problem. Gladly, she continued to sanitize the handle, just in case she had to touch it later on.

* * *

For most of the bus ride, they hadn't really said anything to each other, besides half conversation about McKinley, and the students, and the teachers. The bus had come to a halt, in the parking lot in one of those rest stops. Emma hated public restrooms, so she stayed put, as well as Will. One by one, the kids and the bus driver exited the bus to use the bathrooms or get a snack. There was silence for the first time on the whole bus ride. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Will lean over his arm rest towards her.

"You know, Em- I was wondering, how he… took it, like you coming to regionals with us- with me?" Feeling a quiver on his lips, he backed away, into his seat. He kept his eye on Emma, who was silent. "That is, if you don't mind me asking of course."

Emma cleared her throat, before saying anything. She began to rock back and forth, nodding her head. "He um…" In her mind, she started to replay the conversation between her and Carl…

'_So, is that how you honestly feel Emma?'_

'_Um... that's exactly how I feel, and you of all people, I would have hoped you'd understand, Carl.'_

'_I understand… it's Schuester, isn't it?'_

'_No! How could you say something like that? I know we have had our history but…'_

'_You know what? Say no more… I trust you Emma, and if that means letting you go, then fine. But if find out anything about him trying to pull you away from me, then…'_

"Emma?" Will interjected her thoughts. She jumped slightly, and turned to face him.

"Oh, Carl? He… may have been a little resistant at first, but he is just fine with it now, yeah, just fine!"

Will rolled his eyes at what he just heard. Did a guy like him seriously have no problem with Emma doing something like this? Carl wasn't that understanding, as much as Emma would never admit it. "That's good to hear, Em."

"Yeah..." She said quietly, sinking into her seat, in shame. She had no reason to lie… well maybe she did, but she couldn't be okay with that. Will had to know that she and Carl were in a healthy relationship and that it was going to stay that way, but at this point, something was holding her back. Was it uncertainty? Was it Will? _'Oh gosh, don't think that!'_ Before her thoughts got anymore deeper, she got distracted by a bunch of noisy teens making their way back to their seats.

Finn stood on his knees, leaning over the back of his chair, "How much longer Mr. Schue?"

Will, poked his head up and answered, checking his watch. "Only about 20 minutes left guys."

Emma placed a hand on her chest out of relief. Nothing else could possibly get awkward on the bus ride, since it was near its end. Finn thanked Will as the bus started to go into motion. Carefully, he turned around into his seat. In doing so, he saw Puck whispering something to Brittany and Santana who were sitting behind him. Confused, he slid into his seat, next to Rachel who gripped his arm, in joy.

After about 15 minutes, Will grabbed a hold to the head rest in front of him, and stood. "Hey, Emma, I'll be right back. Gonna go give the kids a little 'pep talk' before the anxiety kicks in." With that, he smiled and did the jazz hands in the air as a joke. Emma laughed quietly, loving his sense of humor. She watched him as he made his way up the aisles, crouching down in the center, grabbing everyone's attention. He was so good with the kids, and they respected him. That was something she always admired, hoping one day she could break out of her shell. A couple minutes passed, and Emma was still focusing on the curly haired teacher. He slowly got up, sounding really confident, as well as the kids. That made her happy, to see such joy. Will began to walk backwards towards his seat, when suddenly one of the kids called out something frantic.

"Stop the bus!"

The driver slammed the brakes immediately, causing the vehicle to go to an abrupt stop. The kids all jerked in their seats, and Will lost his balance. In an instance, Emma saw him flying back and she grasped the handle bars tightly, shutting her eyes, to brace herself. Within a second, she felt a strong impact hit her, causing her to open her eyes. Still glued to the seat, she was forced back into the cloth, by Will he fell into her lap, completely oblivious to where he had ended up.

"Will!" She screamed, biting her lip. Slowly, he bent his head, brushing his curly hair against her chin. Rolling his eyes back, he saw Emma's face up close, and immediately jumped up, falling back onto the floor. Trying to get control of himself finally, he reached out, placing his hand on top of Emma's, which was firm on the arm rest.

"I am so sorry Emma! Are you alright?" He asked frantically, feeling bad about what just happened.

"I- um… oh gosh." Emma began to breathe heavily, looking at Will's hand on top of hers. Will slowly looked up at her, locking onto her eyes. She noticed him looking at her, and followed his eyes. For a few seconds, which felt like hours, they were in a gaze. Emma's face began to get red, as well as Will's. Quickly, she slid her hand from underneath his, shutting her eyes tightly. On the contrast, Will, still in the moment, slowly brought his hand back, where then loosened his collar and stood up.

"That was uh…"

"Mhm, don't say anything else Will." Emma looked up at him, still flushed slightly.

"You guys alright back there?" One of the Glee clubbers called out, but Will and Emma were to pre occupied to even know who asked. Will took a deep breath, and turned to them, nodding his head. At that moment, he realized why the bus had stopped in the first place.

"I- I'm fine. But, why'd you need to stop the bus, what happened?"

In the front, Brittany cautiously raised her hand, and looked back, with a dumb expression on her face.

"Well, Santana said I was pretty quiet today, and I must have left my voice at home… and I thought we would need to turn around it get… so I could sing and we would have a chance at winning…"

Everyone turned to look at her, totally lost. Will slapped himself in the forehead, keeping his cool. "Um… don't worry about it, we'll- we'll be fine Brittany." Reluctantly, he forced a smile, before taking a seat and taking a breath. He heard commotion in the front of the bus, but chose to ignore it, due to other things on his mind. What had just happened? He felt some type of way, looking into her eyes like that. Thing was, she was looking at him the same way. Did she have the same feeling too? Will turned his head, to find Emma fixing her attire that must have gotten messed up when he fell into her. He looked at her and couldn't help but smile. For a second, he thought he saw Emma smiling too.

"I see it! We're here!" Rachel called out, jumping out of her seat, waving frantically. A sudden eruption took place amongst the teens, which eventually reached the two chaperones in the back, who stood up simultaneously, feeling the same way.

* * *

_**End of Chapter 4: **I had fun with that, hope you guys enjoyed it. Don't forget to review, especially if you think I could be doing better, cause that would be very helpful. Expect the next chapter in maybe two or three days, I'm on the roll!_

_Next chapter: The kids are gonna perform at regionals, and Will and Emma have a bit of a conversation ^^_


	5. Regionals Unfolded

_Hey! I'm sorry sorry about the long wait... I had some after school stuff I had to do that was very time consuming. Then when I finally had time to finish the chapter, I had a really hard time finding songs to use that they could preform in this chapter lol if you wanna listen to the songs while they sing them in here, at the bottom of the chapter, I added the set list. This chapter is kinda long, with a good amount of Will and Emma, but I had to shift focus to the glee kids for the performance in all, which I think is a good thing. I really hope you like it and don't forget to review! (:_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 5: Regionals Unfold**

"So guys, the competition isn't anyone we can't give a run for our money- Aural Intensity and the… Clef Trebbles? Um, respectable groups in their own rights I think, but I'm pretty sure we got this." The group all huddled around Will, as he got them prepared.

"We go on at 1pm, so that leaves about an hour and half. We go on last, which is very, good."

The gleaming looks on the kids' faces ensured their confidence, that they wouldn't have a repeat of last year. Rachel raised her hand, wanting to ask a question.

"Mr. Schue, may I- may we, have a little group time to get prepared."

Will nodded his head, "Um, sure. Actually, I'm gonna go grab something to eat." His stomach was pretty empty, since he didn't take a break at the Rest Stop. "Make sure you guys stay on task, and don't forget to warm up!"

"I'll keep them in check Mr Schue, don't worry about it." Mercedes added, giving Artie a high five. Will gave them approval, and made his way over to Emma, pulling her aside.

"Hey Em, you're probably hungry too. Maybe some coffee or something?"

The red headed guidance looked down to the ground before answering. "Um, sure..."

She followed him out of the room, and shut the door behind them. The hall was very large; it was kind of over whelming. There were so many people too, if she was in a show choir, she probably would break down on stage. They passed the main lobby, and found a small food court. There was an empty two seater in the corner that they found. Will pulled out a chair for Emma, who wasn't to ecstatic about eating a sticky table.

"Here you go Cinderella…" He stopped to look at Emma was obviously tense. "Do you need any wipes for the table or something-…. You look a little, well, uneasy."

She just shook her head, and smiled at his nice gesture. Truth was, she was still thinking about what had happened earlier on the bus. She felt something with him that she hadn't in a long time, something she tried not to feel. He was slowly coming back into her life, but it felt faster than a jet flying by. She couldn't have feelings for him. She was a newlywed. That couldn't be the only thing holding her back. She loved Carl, right? Within in a couple minutes, Will had made his way to the table, with a tray of two cups and a brown paper bag.

"I found a Starbucks. I got you a caramel latte, hopefully you like it?"

"That's perfectly fine… what's in the bag?"

Will reached his hand inside, before pulling out a muffin. "It's blueberry, I figured we could split it." He placed it on the table, before pulling out a chocolate chip cookie for himself. He slid his chair out and sat across from Emma. Carefully, he ripped apart the muffin, perfectly, knowing how picky Emma was about that kind of stuff. He slid her half towards her on a napkin and she took it graciously. He began to nibble away at it, savoring each bite. Emma hadn't touched hers.

"So, Will… how have you been? We haven't really talked since lunch the other day."

He looked up at her innocently and shrugged. "Not too bad… I guess." She was probably gonna start asking question about him that he didn't want to answer, so he turned it around. "How about you Em?" He asked, while picking up his cookie.

Emma blinked. "Good... really, good. Carl wants to start looking for house…"

"Oh." That was the only thing a Will could muster up. Their marriage was getting rubbed right in his face. He wished what happened in Vegas, stayed there. Hearing that left him disappointed. Normally, he was say something like 'that's good Emma. I'm happy for you.' but he couldn't. If he did, it would be a lie, which he didn't have strength to do. Will took a bite of his cookie, not looking Emma in the eye.

"Will, I have to ask you something." She said, out of know where. Will looked up, as she sounded pretty intent.

"Sure… what's up?" He asked her, hesitantly.

Emma stayed silent for a few seconds before saying anything. "What's it like, Will?" He looked at her, not getting what she was asking. That could have meant anything, unless it was supposed to be obvious.

He asked her to explain. "What was what like?"

"Well… being married. I'm kind of new- at this kind of thing, you know?" Emma spoke softly, pretty touchy n the whole subject, especially with Will, but she was so confused, and knew he could help. Getting married in Vegas wasn't her ideal reality, but happened. It felt right at the moment, but now she wasn't so sure if she was ready.

"Um- hmm…" Will really didn't want to talk about marriage. He had finally begun to get out of his funk from him and Terri's divorce. And now, he would have to go into the subject of Emma's? He had to help her though, especially after all the times he went to her for advice. Will put down his cookie, trying to get relaxed before beginning the conversation.

"Well, it's not all it's cracked up to be, I mean look at mine-" He looked at Emma, whose eyes were wide out of fear. "Wait! No, no! I'm not saying yours is gonna end up that way or anything..." He grid his teeth, for he clearly was no expert. "All I'm saying is, you're gonna be in for a lot of, uh, surprises? Yeah, that's it. You're going to see things about the person you are with… differently."

"How so?" Emma interjected with curiosity. It would probably lead to a Terri drabble, but that was alright.

Will had begun to reminisce about his high school years. "You see me and Terri, we we're perfect for each other back in high school. I mean _everything_ was going great. And I thought, everything was going to stay that way, but then I realized… it's not like that." Across the table, he saw Emma nibbling on her half of the muffin, totally in tuned to what he was saying.

"She changed… I changed too. I think that was the biggest problem."

Emma looked up, and stopped chewing for a second. "So it's um, bound to happen?"

He waved his hands frantically and explained. "Not necessarily. Looking back, I learned that, Terri tried to change me… make me into someone she wanted, but that someone wasn't who I wanted to be-" It dawned on him… that was something Emma also was going through, even though she didn't realize it. He thought maybe he should bring it up as point in what he was trying to say. "And well, honestly… I see that happening to you, Em."

"W- what do you mean, Will?" She couldn't believe he had just said something like that. What was he trying to do, make her have an epiphany or something?

Will chuckled, "I don't know… you seem different since you have been with Carl. And I don't mean in a bad way… but I miss- I miss the _adorable_ Emma Pillsbury… the one, who wore those plastic gloves, who refused to drink from a cup restaurant without bottled water and a straw-"

"How'd you know that?" Emma interrupted.

He smiled at her, "Trust me, I know you a lot better than you think. All I am saying is… that's who _you_ are and you were perfectly fine, just being you." Will turned his head away, slightly embarrassed. "That sounded really sappy…"

Emma placed a hand over her heart, with a lopsided grin. "No, no... not at all, Will. That was sweet." She forgot how well he was to her, seeing only the wrong he had done to her since Sue had told her about the things he had done, behind her back.

Feeling relief, Will laughed under his breath, and nodded. "Yeah… well, point is- is that in a marriage, you have to learn to compromise, but…" He paused, to look at Emma. "You can't compromise yourself." What he was saying was sincere, from the bottom of his heart, and he hoped Emma understood that. They shared looks across the table, before a loud dinging went off over the loud speakers.

Will was the first one to break away from the moment. "Well, looks like we better get ready… I'm feeling real good about this Em."

"Me too." They both stood up, gathering their belongings. Emma went to grab her trash, when Will stopped her.

"Let me grab that for you." He said, reaching a hand out, gathering her cup and napkins.

"Thanks, Will." Emma said, not knowing any other way to say it. Quickly, they weaved through the crowds, founding every opening possible to make it to the room where the rest of the group was at. After about a couple minutes, they made their way to the door. They hadn't heard any voices from the inside, so Will took a peek inside. There, he saw everyone, hugging each other like one big family, kind of what he wanted for the group. Although he didn't want to ruin the moment, he had to get them ready to go backstage.

"Hey guys... time to get going. Performance starts in 15 minutes." Slowly, the group began to break apart, forming a line towards the exit. No one looked worried, nor did they look happy. Only focused and ready to give it all they had. Will shook each of their hands, and gave them a pat on the back, wishing the good luck. They soon reached backstage, feeling anxiety.

"This is it guys, do it for yourselves, do it for Mr. Schue, and show everyone what we got!" Rachel exclaimed, before making her way over to Sam and Quinn, who were silent, in the mood. "Hey guys… I just wanted to wish you two- good luck. I doubted you before, at Sectionals, but we have this one." They both embraced her, before breaking away, towards the rear of the auditorium, to make their entrance.

Will and Emma, made their way into the audience, trying to find a good seat, which was extremely hard due to a packed house. They both sat down, patiently waiting for the performance to begin. "So, Sam and Quinn are doing the ballad again… I know it's risky, but they'll do great, not to mention our set list is amazing."

She smiled confidently at him, "They'll do wonderful Will- I know it." Slowly, the lights dimmed, allowing two spot lights to make their way to the doors behind them. The music began to play, having everyone turn their heads, recognizing the familiar tune.

**_(Sam)_**

"_I could stay awake just to hear you breathing Watch you smile while you are sleeping Far away and dreaming I could spend my life in this sweet surrender I could stay lost in this moment forever Well, every moment spent with you Is a moment I treasure _

_I don't wanna close my eyes I don't wanna fall asleep 'Cause I'd miss you, babe And I don't wanna miss a thing 'Cause even when I dream of you The sweetest dream will never do I'd still miss you, babe And I don't wanna miss a thing" _

**_(Quinn) _**

"_Lying close to you Feeling your heart beating And I'm wondering what you're dreaming Wondering if it's me you're seeing Then I kiss your eyes and thank God we're together And I just wanna stay with you In this moment forever, forever and ever"_

**_(Both)_**

"_I don't wanna close my eyes_

_I don't wanna fall asleep_

_'Cause I'd miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

_'Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream will never do_

_I'd still miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing"_

Will couldn't help but feel emotional with the song, sitting next to Emma. He turned his head subtly to look at her; so engrossed in the performance, she didn't even notice.

**_(Sam)_**

"_I don't wanna miss one smile I don't wanna miss one kiss_

_Well, I just wanna be with you_

_Right here with you, just like this"_

**_(Quinn)_**

"_I just wanna hold you close_

_Feel your heart so close to mine_

_And stay here in this moment_

_For all the rest of time"_

**_(Both)_**

"_Don't wanna close my eyes_

_Don't wanna fall asleep_

_'Cause I'd miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

_'Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream will never do_

_'Cause I'd still miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing"_

They made their way on stage, opposite of each other, singing their hearts out. Once they met at the middle, they stopped, to hold hands.

**_(Sam)_**

"_Don't wanna close my eyes"_

**_(Quinn)_**

"_Don't wanna fall asleep, yeah"_

**_(Both)_**

"_I don't wanna miss a thing"_

Releasing the last line in perfect harmony, the crowd stood up, clapping wildly. There they stood; gleaming as the curtain behind them began to rise, revealing the rest of New Directions, standing ready in formation. An array of colored lights shined above them, vivifying their ensemble outfits, moved in many formations for the next tune.

**_(Artie)_**

"_Do I attract you?_

_Do I repulse you with my queasy smile?_

_Am I too dirty? Am I too flirty?_

_Do I like what you like?_

_Yeah, I could be wholesome_

_I could be loathsome_

_I guess I'm a little bit shy_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like me without making me try?"_

**_(Finn)_**

"_I try to be like Grace Kelly_

_But all her looks were too sad_

_So I tried a little Freddie_

_I've gone identity mad!"_

**_(All)_**

"_I could be brown, I could be blue_

_I could be violet sky_

_I could be hurtful, I could be purple_

_I could be anything you like_

_Gotta be green, gotta be mean_

_Gotta be everything more_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you walk out the door!"_

At the chorus, they all broke out into dance, livening up the room.

**_(Puck)_**

"_How can I help it? How can I help it?_

_How can I help what you think?_

_Hello my baby, hello my baby_

_Putting my life on the brink_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like yourself?_

_Should I bend over?_

_Should I look older just to be put on your shelf?"_

**_(Finn)_**

"_I try to be like Grace Kelly_

_But all her looks were too sad_

_So I tried a little Freddie_

_I've gone identity mad!"_

**_(All)_**

"_I could be brown, I could be blue_

_I could be violet sky_

_I could be hurtful, I could be purple_

_I could be anything you like_

_Gotta be green, gotta be mean_

_Gotta be everything more_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Walk out the door!"_

**_(Boys)_**

"_Say what you want to satisfy yourself, hey!_

_But you only want what everybody else_

_Says you should want, you should want"_

**_(Finn)_**

"_I could be brown, I could be blue_

_I could be violet sky_

_I could be hurtful, I could be purple_

_I could be anything you like_

_Gotta be green, gotta be mean_

_Gotta be everything more_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Walk out the door!"_

**_(All)_**

"_I could be brown, I could be blue_

_I could be violet sky_

_I could be hurtful, I could be purple_

_I could be anything you like_

_Gotta be green, gotta be mean_

_Gotta be everything more_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Why don't you like me?_

_Walk out the door!"_

Every member in New Directions sang the last line like there was no tomorrow. The audience rose to their feet steadily, full of energy. Now all they had to do was reel them in, with the grand finale. The lights went dim, as the members of the club got into the parallel lines, with the back windowing the front. The piano began to play, letting the kids take it away…

**_(All)_**

"_Five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Six hundred minutes,_

_Five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Moments so dear_

_Five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Six hundred minutes_

_How do you measure, measure a year?_

_In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights_

_In cups of coffee_

_In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife_

_In five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Six hundred minutes_

_How do you measure_

_A year in the life?_

_How about love?_

_How about love?_

_How about love? Measure in love_

_Seasons of love_

_Seasons of love"_

**_(Rachel)_**

"_Five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Six hundred minutes!_

_Five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Journeys to plan_

_Five hundred twenty-five thousand_

_Six hundred minutes_

_How do you measure the life_

_Of a woman or a man?"_

**_(Finn)_**

"_In truths that she learned,_

_Or in times that he cried._

_In bridges he burned,_

_Or the way that she died"_

The kids began to clap their hands together, high in the air, getting the crowd to follow along in joy.

**_(All)_**

"_It's time now to sing out,_

_Tho' the story never ends_

_Let's celebrate_

_Remember a year in the life of friends_

_Remember the love!_

_Remember the love!_

_Seasons of love!"_

**_(Rachel & All)_**

"_Oh you got to got to _

_Remember the love! _

_You know that love is a gift from up above _

_Share love, give love spread love"_

**_(Mercedes)_**

"_Measure, measure your life in love!"_

At that moment, just as she had done a little over a year in regionals, looked up to Will, seeing the emotions of his face, that she couldn't comprehend but help to feel too.

**_(All)_**

"_Seasons of love_

_Seasons of love…."_

The audience erupted into applause, as Emma was clearly distracted. When she saw Will pop up, she joined him, cheering louder than she ever had. The kids bowed up on stage, full of glee. The applause continued for about a minute, before it began to die down. Will grabbed Emma's hand, pulling her from the row. She held on tightly, as they ran backstage to congratulate the kids. They stood in a corner, squealing and embracing each other, with nothing but happiness.

"Guys! That- that was amazing!" Will yelled, loud above the commotion. He gave out high fives, and occasionally hugging anyone that asked for one. Emma also went around to each of the members, pointing out how well they did. It was a joyful moment, only to be interrupted by a loud speaker.

**'Would all participating groups, please make their way on stage for the awards'**

The kids took deep breaths, knowing now was the moment of truth. Will rubbed his hands together before going on stage. "I don't care what the judges say… you all have won." They all looked at him, appreciative of his confidence in them. Not in any rush whatsoever, they walked through the back curtains, and back on to the stage, only to be standing there with two other teams, just as nervous as they were. The judges had also made their way on stage, walking towards a podium, with the results in their hands. The crowd went silent, waiting to hear who would win, who would be going to nationals in a month. An older man, who looked fairly educated in music, took the microphone in his hand.

"In third place, we have…." The anticipation was nerve racking, although the kids knew they couldn't have finished last this time around. "From Clermont, Ohio- the Clef Trebles!" Subtle claps came from the audience, knowing that third place wasn't something to be ecstatic about. Solemnly, the group had accepted their plaque, before leaving the stage. New Directions moved closer towards Aural Intensity, their only other obstacle at this point. Will breathed heavily in and out, feeling just as his kids probably did, who were itching for the chance to be able to jump and scream after being called the first place winners. He looked down, seeing Emma's hand, gripping his pant on the side of his leg, shaking out of anxiety. He ignored it, because she was finally holding onto him for something.

The announcer was handed a large envelop, which he opened half way. "And now, our first place winners…" Everyone closed their eyes, waiting for the moment, to take its course.

* * *

**Author's Note: **_I really hope you enjoyed this, it was hard to write but I personally liked how it turned out, but you guys can let me know yourselves what you think. And please don't mind the cliff hanger xD I will try my hardest to get the next chapter out in two days, and we will find out the winner and some other stuff will be thrown in. Thanks for reading, please review... and enjoy Glee tonight! :D_

**Songs**

I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing- Aerosmith

Grace Kelly- Mika

Seasons of Love- Rent


	6. Our Lucky Charm

_Hello... I got this chapter out in time luckily. It's a little longer than the normal chapters, cause I have a lot more different 'scenes' happening. they are brief though, so hopefully it wont drag on as you read it. Thanks for the reviews, Im so glad to see that people are into this story, so I'm gonna try to make this keep going for a bit, it should be fun. Btw, I really liked the newest episode of glee xD I wont be using any cannon stuff this story though I don't think, unless you want me too. Well, read, review, and enjoy!_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 6: Our Lucky Charm**

"And now, in first place… Our 2011 Western Ohio Regional Champions-" The announcer slowly slid the result fully out of the envelope. There was a dead silence, a gap that could fill the Grand Canyon. The members of New Directions as well as Will and Emma, had their eyes shut tightly, holding their tounges as to whether or not they should scream.

"McKinley High's 'New Directions' from Lima, Ohio!" The kids let out their first breath, before jumping around wildly, feeling like champions. The crowd busted into applause, rising to their feet, clapping endlessly. Will held his hands out, with a loss of words.

Emma grabbed his shoulders, shaking him. "Oh my gosh, Will!" He opened his arms widely, wrapping them around Emma, embracing her. She held him tightly, as they hopped up and down together. Soon, she had her head rested on his chest as they rocked back in forth slowly, beaming. It felt like their brief hug had lasted a lifetime, before being broken apart by excited glee kids, ready to tackle Will at the chance.

"We won! We won!" Were the words coming repeatedly from the kid's mouth, in utter disbelief as to what just occurred. Will broke away from the huddle, walking towards the judges. Graciously, he accepted the towering trophy, before shaking each of their hands ferociously. He ran back towards his group, handing the award to kids. They shot it up in the air, screaming with tears streaming down their face, never wanting the moment to end.

* * *

The engine howled as the driver turned on the ignition, and closed the doors. A wild bunch of kids refused to sit down, talking about what it felt like to be winners. Will and Emma also stood at the front of the bus, with the shiny trophy seated comfortably on a seat next to them. Finn began to quiet down the group, getting their attention focused to their teacher.

"Wait till Figgins sees this!" Will said, while his hand hovered of the trophy. The kids laughed in amusement.

Emma waved her finger. "No, no… wait till Sue Sylvester sees it!" The bus erupted into a bunch of chanting, and Will joined them rubbing Emma's shoulder. Finally, that Sue couldn't stop the Glee club, and they were better than ever.

"She's right, but…." He paused, for some kind of dramatic effect. "Wait till everyone sees our trophy from Nationals!" He held his tightly in a fist, swinging it the air. He looked back at Emma who was standing their patiently, and snapped his head towards the back, gesturing for to go sit down. She nodded, taking small steps through the aisles. Will slid into his row of seats, allowing Emma to get to hers before taking a seat. Emma sat down, and looked out of the window, as the bus pulled away. Will looked at the back of her head, and at her reflection in the mirror before resting his head on the seat, closing his eyes.

"Ugh... I can't believe it. All the hard work finally paid off." He said consciously.

Emma turned her head, and looked at Will who was in a place of his own. "Well Will… they have you as a teacher. And, _nothing _is impossible if you fight for it." She said, letting her words slowly fade away into silence. He let her words process for a moment. Nothing was impossible… could that apply to them. He wasn't sure to keep fighting, but something about her wouldn't let him give up. Will muttered a laugh under his breath, and grinned, still in the same position.

"That's right… especially with- _our_ good luck charm." He said, whole heartedly.

Her jaw dropped, not knowing what to say, only knowing how important she was to the kids, and how important she still was to him. Just as Will, she rested her head on the seat, and closed her eyes, feeling genuinely happy for the first time, for some reason other than Carl, who she thought was the only one at the moment who could make her feel better about herself, but she was _clearly_ mistaken.

* * *

'_Emma… Emma! Wake up.'_ She felt her body being shaken, as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Will?" She said groggily, seeing him through her squinted eyes. He chuckled before crossing his arms and leaning in. "You fell asleep, Em. We are back at the school now."

Emma jumped up, now wide awake. "Oh gosh… I've never fell asleep on a- on a bus!" She grabbed the scarf around her neck, in a panic.

"Haha, it's okay Em." Will helped her up, carefully with a cheesy grin on his face. "Sweet dreams?"

She looked him, her eyes wide. "Oh, um… no- just sleep." She hadn't dreamed, before drifting off into a sleep, she had been thinking about the eventful day, about Will, who she was certainly sure about being confused about. He nodded, "Well, I guess we will wait here until the kids get picked up." Emma just shook her head, making her way off of the bus. The sky was a mirage of warm colors, as the sun was starting set in the distance. A cool breeze chilled her, as she folded her arms, waiting patiently. She didn't say anything to Will really, and he didn't say anything to her. Emma watched as one by one, the glee kids got into their parent's cars. The guys for the most part, just departed with a salute. The girls however, gave tight squeezes to both Will and her. She always loved how much the glee kids welcomed her with open arms, when she really had nothing to do with their success contrary to belief. She turned to Will, who was rocking back on his heels and toes.

He scratched his head through his curly hair, "Guess I better take this to the choir room…" They both glanced at the trophy that was sitting on the concrete, standing up to elbows. Will picked it up gently, examining it for a couple seconds before heading to the doors of McKinley. Emma followed behind him, her hands nicely cupped in front of her. He stopped at the door, and put the trophy back down, to reach in his pocket and pull out his key card, which unlock the doors, since no one else was there on a Saturday. The green light beeped on the sensor, and Will placed his hand on the door handle. He stared at it briefly, and let go of it.

"Emma… I really, really want you to know how thankful I am that you went through, I'm sure, what was a lot of trouble to come, and I-"

"You're welcome, Will. And I um, wanted to say thanks again to you." Emma spoke softly, as the wind blew her hair across her face.

He turned to her, surprised "Thanks for what?"

"For well, the advice I suppose, for today… it was great." She smiled at him, and he returned the look. Emma slowly broke away from the exchange. "I should really get going… see you Monday, Will." She said, turning away, trying to avoid anything from happening that she knew couldn't. As she took her first step, she Will's hand gently fall onto her shoulder, stopping her from leaving.

She heard him sigh, and listened. "I miss you Em, I do… and I know I screwed up our friendship before, and I just hope that maybe we can rebuild it, one step at a time maybe?" He said, quivering a bit. Emma didn't react immediately. This worried Will, thinking he over stepped his boundaries, and he quickly let go. Emma slowly turned to him, and smiled, reassuringly. He closed his eyes, letting a breath of relief. As he calmed his nerves, Emma got on her tippy toes, and leaned in, giving him a light kiss on the cheek.

"Bye Will." She said said with a solemn voice, with a hint of warmth. Will bit his lip, feeling himself get a tad flushed. When he opened his eyes, she had already begun walking away. Lifting his hand to his face, he lightly stroked it down his cheek, cracking a timid smile…

Emma walked to her car, heavy on her feet. She knew was probably a mistake, but it seemed fine at the moment… so she wouldn't regret it, but only hope she wouldn't regret to what it may lead to if, anything at all. She sat in her car, and stared out the windshield, letting the thoughts in her mind process before turning her car on. She turned the keys in the ignition, and put her hand on the wheel. As she was about to press the gas pedal, her phone began to ring. Was it Will? Oh why was he the first one to come to her mind? Hastily, she reached inside her purse, and pulled it out. The front read Carl. It was really bad timing but she couldn't ignore it. Flipping it open, she pressed talk and held the phone to her ear.

"_C- Carl, um what's up?"_

"_Hey Emma! I was just checking in you know, will you be home soon?"_

"_Yep, Carl! I'll be home so-so soon." _

"_Is everything alright?"_

She wasn't really good at hiding things; luckily they weren't face to face. _"Nope… I mean yes. I mean, there isn't anything wrong."_

"_Right… see you when you get home, I love you."_

"_You too Carl, goodbye…"_ Quickly, she ended the brief conversation and shut her phone closed , letting it slide out of her hand into the cup holder next to her.

* * *

It was Monday. It was only two days since the kids had beat the competition. They felt good about themselves on so many levels. However, they weren't the only ones feeling good. Will walked into the school that morning, with his shades in full effect, actually wanting to be at McKinley. He wanted to see the look on Figgins face when he called Will in to discuss Regionals, and then talk about how their isn't enough money to transport them to Nationals, he wanted to be able to run the victory in Sue's face, and most importantly, see Emma. He felt like a champion for the first time in a while and was ready to embrace it. In his train of thought, he turned a corner sharply, and felt himself bump into someone. He backed up, and looked down to find a stack of papers, scattered all over the floor. Will crouched down, and began to pick them up frantically.

"I'm really sorry." He said hysterically. Putting the papers in one hand, he looked up to hand them to the person, and then he realized who it was.

"Hi, Will… don't worry about. As much as I don't like a mess- I can make an exception this time."

"Emma!" Her face was glowing today and he couldn't help to fawn over it. "Glad to hear that." He said, with a lopsided grin. She reached out and took the paper from him, the slid the stack into her large tote bag, organized nonetheless.

She observed him for a little, looking at his face and posture. "I- I haven't seen you this happy in a while… it's a great thing you have glee in your life." He shifted his eyes to the side and nodded. Emma looked at him confused, and just shrugged. "Well, I need to get to my office… Monday is a tough day for some reason for a lot of the kids here. I'm pretty sure I'll be seeing Rachel, she always has some kind epiphany over the weekend."

He laughed in agreement. Emma gave him a small wave, before walking away, and waved back timidly, before going on his way too….

The mornings had always been kind of long; sometimes he himself got bored with Spanish. There are only times you can repeat a word or two without getting annoyed with it. He lounged in his roller chair, waiting for the bell to ring so he could dismiss the class and get to the choir room. When the bell went off, he was out before the kids were. Of course though, the glee kids were already always in their seats before he even arrived.

"Mr Schue! I would first like to say that I have already figured out an _amazing _setlist for Nationals and-"

"Um Rachel, honey… I kinda wanna bask in the glory of winning regionals without having to listen to you all day." Santana interjected, while crossing her arms with a smirk on her face.

Will walked over the group, wanting to relieve the tension. "Well Rachel, you can tell me about it _after _class. However guys, she is right, I'm just as stoked as you all are about winning, but we can't let it go to our heads, so we need to get moving along here." That was a typical speech after accomplishing something and moving on to new heights, but it was always true. Will turned his head when he saw a hand shoot up. "Yes Artie?"

"Well, before we get to work Mr Schue… we, the glee club, wanted to have a little celebratory dinner tonight at…"

"BreadstiX!" Both Brittany and Santana yelled out in unison.

Will rubbed his hands together, and bowed slightly. "Actually, that sounds like a great idea, but that's kind of, you know, costly.."

"Which is why _you're_ paying for it Schuester. My pool cleaning business isn't open till the Summer so.." Puck said wisely, while exchanging looks with Will over the matter.

Will lifted his shoulders and shrugged, finally giving in. "Fine, fine…"

Mercedes stood up before her comment would get ignored. "One more thing… we want Ms P to come, if that's cool?" Everyone in the group nodded, especially Puck, with a smug look on his face. Will shook his head from side to side.

"Look, that sounds great and all… but I'm not so sure if that's a great idea." As much as he would love her to come, he didn't want Carl to start getting insecure about it all. He couldn't push things too much, or it would end in disaster.

"Of course it is Mr Schue! You always say how much of good luck charm she is… and we like her around, and you don't seem to mind either so-"

Will let out a halfhearted laugh, as he loosened his collar, "Okay! Um, like I said… it may not work it out, so don't get your hopes up, alright?" The group sucked their teeth, and made annoyed expressions. "Anyway… I guess I'm paying, and we'll meet at 6:30, sounds good?"

They all shook their heads. Will turned his back to them, as he went over to the board, picking up a dry erase marker. He began to write on the board, a list of information the kids would need later on. While he wasn't paying much attention, Rachel leaned into the rest of the group, primarily the girls.

"He totally wants Ms P to come. Didn't you see the way they hugged at Regionals, it was an 'aw' moment for sure."

Quinn waved her hand at Rachel. "If he says know, then let it be, how can be so sure anyways? You're no expert when it comes to love."

Rachel took the offensively, but let it brush by her, not making anything out of it. "It's so obvious, and after reading my Barbra Streisand biography and intense research on ballads, I have come to learn about 'love'."

"Right Rach, well… I say we just go ahead and ask her. I mean, what harm could it do?" Mercedes said confidently, believing she always knew what was real and what wasn't.

"Um… I'm pretty sure that hot dentist that owns her wouldn't approve. Don't you remember that incident when we did the Rocky Horror Show?"

Brittany put her hand on Santana's shoulder, bewildered. "I thought that was just part of the show…" They all looked at her, totally ignoring the comment."

Rachel cleared the air, before closing the meeting. "I've got this all figured out guys… this operation is a go."

* * *

_**Author's Note: **Hope you guys liked it. Honestly, if you think its moving slow, just let me know, I didn't want to rush things though cause that wouldnt be any fun lol. Next chapter will basically be a nice little dinner at BreadstiX! I had to throw that place in somewhere haha. Thanks for reading!_


	7. Dinner at the Sticks

_And we're back! After some minor writer's block as to what to do with this chapter, I got some idea's flowing which I think are satisfying enough for now hehe... Well um, its clear that they will in fact be going to Nationals in this fic, so I am trying to have a decent, but tolerable spread in between now and the competition, so for the next few chapters, I will throw in some Wemma goodness for development, leading up to the really, really, good part that I can't wait to write, so it wont be long. Thanks again to all the faithful readers and reviewers along with the recent amount of alerts i got, so enjoy :)_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 7: Dinner at the Sticks**

"Mrs Pillsbury?" A regular at the guidance counselor's office had knocked on the thick glass. Emma looked up from her paper work and greeted her.

"Ah, Rachel… come in, please." She said with a smile on her face. Deep inside though, she knew this would be another drabble about the life of Rachel Berry. The only thing she could do was listen and ultimately agree with her, no matter how absurd she may have sounded. Rachel made her way into the office, and sat down across from Emma. The first few minutes were always an awkward silence, until Emma the typical question for their Monday meetings.

"Okay!... So how was your weekend?"

Rachel flipped her hair to the side with a huge grin on her face. "Oh, it was wonderful. Psh… you know that Mrs P, but actually… that's not what I wanted to talk about today." She leaned in closer with a serious look on her face, and Emma leaned back.

"Really? So um, what did you want to talk about…?" She asked curiously. This was something new, and it kind of worried her.

"Well, in light of winning Regionals, the girls and I wanted to go have a little celebration tonight at BreadtstiX, and… we want you to come too!" Rachel clasped her hands together and held them to her chest, awaiting a response Emma.

She looked at Rachel wearily… "I um, I don't know…"

"Please, it would mean a lot to us, if you would come." Using her dramatic ways, she turned to a face of sorrow, trying to reel Emma in, and it was working. Emma bit her lip, before smiling at Rachel slightly

"Just the girls, right?" She asked cautiously. Knowing she would have to let Carl know of her whereabouts, if Will was going to be there, he would have a big problem with that. An evening with the glee girls though wasn't that exciting though, and they would probably be at each other's throats, but she couldn't turn them down. Rachel shook her head rapidly, assuring Emma that was the case. "I'll see what I can do Rachel, it sounds so-so fun, Rachel."

That was good enough for Rachel. Who shot up immediately, satisfied. "Great! Um, BreadstiX at 6:30, we'll probably already be there." Emma nodded, and took a deep breath. Rachel made her way to the door, without looking back, "See ya later Mrs Pillsbury!" The red headed guidance counselor waved timidly, before pulling her hand back, ready to get back to her work.

Rachel turned the corner into the hallway full on kids, getting to their next period class. She reached in her pocket and pulled out a phone, flipping it open. She dialed Mercedes number, and let it ring only once.

"Hey, what's up girl?"

"Mercedes, it's all set."

Mercedes held her phone out, putting it on speaker. "Oh great! Tina's here too. I'm gonna hit up the other girls and let them know. I can't wait for tonight, it's gonna be good."

Rachel grinned proudly. "Yes it will. Talk to you later?" She asked, and Mercedes told her they would stay in touch. She put her phone away and strutted down the hall to class.

* * *

The clock read 5:59pm, as Emma brushed her hair, being careful not to let any strands fall to floor. She shuttered when she felt two touch her from behind.

"I'm sorry babe, didn't mean to scare you." Carl said frantically, laughing a tad bit. Emma looked over her shoulder at him and just nodded. He walked over to the bed, and took a seat, watching Emma get herself ready in the mirror. "You know, we haven't really talked that much this weekend, Emma, and I'm worried to be honest." He paused, waiting for her to turn around and actually listen. She placed the brush on the dresser and gave him the attention he wanted. "Did I do something wrong?"

Emma shook her head. "No, no… not at all. Why would you think that?" Nervously, she began to play with her fingers.

"Well, I don't know… maybe it's me just being paranoid." He chuckled, trying not to let anything get to his head. Carl was the type to keep his cool in most situations. "Actually, you haven't even told me where you are going yet… it would kinda be nice to know."

Emma looked down to the ground, and thought for a moment. She was only going with the girls, and he shouldn't get mad about that, right? There was no reason to lie, so she would tell him point blank. "The girls from Glee Club want me to, to um have dinner with them tonight… for their win on Saturday." Her voice was a little shaky, not know what would go through his mind.

Carl scratched the back of his head, skeptical. "Only the girls, huh?"

"Why yes… only the girls. Why do you ask, Carl?" She knew what he was going to say almost immediately.

"Oh, I just thought Schuester would be there or something… but then again, he's seen enough of you this weekend, wouldn't you say?" He said, pretty confident in his assumption. Emma tightened her jaw, not really feeling what he just said to her. She thought it was kind of inconsiderate, with him knowing she still wanted to be friends with him to a certain extent.

"Well, no. He won't be there." Emma walked over to the dresser, and pulled out the top drawer. "I need to get going, or I'll be late." This was not a conversation she wanted to have. She pulled out a pack of wipes, about to put them in her purse when Carl stopped her.

He laughed, holding on to her wrist. "You don't need those Emma, it's only a restaurant."

She pulled away, and stood firmly. "Well, I- I'd like to take a little extra caution, if that's alright." Honestly, she had missed doing what she had always done when it came to germs. No matter how much Carl had tried to help her, she still was never totally comfortable with it all. And after talking to Will, she knew she didn't need to be self-conscious. Emma made her way to the door, standing strong, before turning back to Carl once more. "Bye, Carl…"

He stood up, and called out to her, "Don't be long!" as he watched nervously, as she left the condo with a new stride.

* * *

They booth in the corner was getting filled, with various glee kids arriving at different times. Will looked at his watch, "6:31… and it looks like everyone is here."

Rachel nodded with a fake smile, constantly snapping her head back for any sign of Emma.

"I thought you said she was coming…" Santana said quietly in her ear, trying to make Rachel feel insecure.

"She'll be here…" She said to Santana, while also reassuring herself. That's when she heard one of the bells go off by the entrance. _'Bingo!'_ Without hesitation, she jumped up from her seat, leaving everyone wondering what the sudden commotion was. Rachel turned threw the mazes of booths and tables, meeting Emma at the sign in desk.

"She's with us, thank you." Rachel told the greeter while grabbing Emma's arm. "Glad you could make it Ms P, we're over there." She pointed toward the table with her free hand, which was blocked from Emma's view due to the all the busy waiters and waitresses running around. "No problem, Rachel." Reluctantly, she let herself be dragged along by Rachel towards the table. As they approached it, one of the kids called out her name.

"Hey Mrs Pillsbury!"

Will eyes opened wide, as he looked away from the center of the table and into the aisle. There Emma was, all dressed up, following behind Rachel. She waved to the kids, confused by why the guys were all sitting there, but nonetheless happy to see them. Then out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone too familiar, and put her hand back to her side in awe.

"Emma?"

She looked at Will, who was clearly as shocked as she was. "Will…"she muttered under her breath, totally freaking out in her mind. He wasn't supposed there. Was it a set up? She tried not to think negative about the kids, but it was the only thing she could wrap around her mind.

"Okay guys… slide down so Mrs P can have a seat." Rachel looked at the guys sitting immediately next to Will, moving her head in the opposite direction, gesturing them to move. Will was at the end, so Emma would be easily able sit next to him. Hesitantly, Will shifted over too, leaving room for Emma at the end. Slowly, she eased her way into the warm cushion to which he had left, sitting there, very tense.

Will leaned in a little towards her, "I um, didn't expect you to be here, Em."

She shook her head in agreement. "Same here…"

"Huh?" Will asked confused by her response. Emma looked at him frantically and waved her hands. "Oh nothing, n- never mind…" Her voice slowly started to fade away, not knowing what to say. It wasn't really necessary for her to explain the situation at the moment, so she ignored it.

The kids were in their own conversation, while the two sat their awkwardly. Finally, a waitress came to the table, ready to ask for drinks, after placing a starter basket of breadsticks in the middle of the table. After taking the orders of the kids, she turned to Will and Emma. "And how can I help you two?"

Emma wasn't really quick to answer to strangers, when it came to anything since she was already very hesitant, so Will ordered for her.

"I'll have a coke… and for her, can you bring a bottled water, with a straw and cup, please?" He told the waitress what Emma wanted easily, and Emma looked up at her and smiled, because that was what she would have said. The waitress, smiled back as Will took a breadstick out of the basket, and took a bite out of it.

"Your husband is quite a gentlemen, I'll be right back." The waitress said clueless, before turning around. Will spit out the breadstick he had been chewing before choking on it. Immediately, Emma had to set the record straight before the waitress left. "He isn't um, my husband!" But it was too late. All the kids turned their attention to the two, seeing both their faces turning a hint of red.

"You alright, Mrs P? You look a little hot…" Puck said with a smirk on his face, making sure not to look at Will this time he decided to make a comment. Emma didn't bother to look at Puck, very embarrassed. Feeling the same way, Will tried to help the situation.

"Yeah uh, I think it's just because she still has her, um, jacket on." He looked at the group with a nervous smile on his face. "It is pretty crowded in here…"

Emma turned to him and shook her head in agreement. "He's right! Exactly, right…" Will cleared his throat, reminding Emma she should probably take her jacket off now. She slid her arms out of the sleeves and folded her jacket precisely. Will took it out of her hands and placed it on top of his jacket neatly. She also had a comfortable, while hat on to keep her warm from the chill outside. She took that off, and Will slid it between his leg and the jacket. He gave her a little glance, and she smiled shyly. Finally, the waitress was back, with a tray full of drinks. They passed the down the table and the waitress began taking orders, while the kids continued with their conversation with Will and Emma having their own light chat on the side.

"So Mr Schue, what's up with Nationals?" One of the kids asked curiously.

He broke away from Emma to break the answer the question. "Well, I'm not sure who all is competing, but they are a month from now. It may not seem like a lot of time, but if we work hard, it will be easier than you think." They would be going all the way to NY, right? One of the girl's took light of the situation.

"You should so come Mrs. P!" Mercedes said, nudging Rachel's shoulder, who became aware of the idea. "I mean, we do need another chaperone, right?"

Emma looked a little dismayed. "Why- that would be wonderful… but I um, don't know if that would work out…" She turned to Will who also showed a little disappointment on his face. Spending a weekend in New York, with her, would be magical.

"What don't you bring that Carl guy with you… I wouldn't mind an extra chaperone." Santana pointed out, totally ignoring the girl's dirty looks that she received.

Will opened his mouth wide and shook his head. That wouldn't be something he would enjoy. "Look guys, if Mrs Pillsbury isn't so sure, no need to push her into anything, right?" He looked at Emma, who was surprised that he wasn't pushing the notion of her coming. Unsure, she just nodded her head in agreement.

"Well, then you could at least stop by Glee rehearsals, maybe?" Finn added, figuring that wasn't too much to ask.

Will snapped his fingers, "Now that's any idea, what do you think, Em? I'm sure we'd all appreciate that." He didn't know about the kids, but he diffidently would.

"Oh… sure, that sounds fun."

"Cool." Will added, before grinning at her. After about 15 minutes or so, everyone's meals had been prepared. He had ordered spaghetti while Emma had just gotten a garden salad, since she wasn't really hungry anyway. As they began to eat, something was irking her. Feeling a little edgy, she reached into her bag, and pulled out the packs of wipes.

"Ah, here we go." She said, with a smile on her face. Taking one wipe out, she began to smoothly, wipe it across the table in the middle of the meal.

Will noticed what she was doing rather quickly, and turned to her with a mouth full of spaghetti. "Is everything alright, I could get someone to clean it up for you." Except, his words sounded like a jumbled mess. Emma stopped to answer him.

"Oh no... It's just- well, you eat like a little kid." She said with a small giggle.

He frowned at her, not believing what she was saying. "Huh? No I don't-" Then he looked at the area in front of him and between him and Emma. There were spots of tomato sauces and countless crumbs. He looked a little embarrassed and apologized. "Sorry about that."

She shook her head and pulled out another wipe. "It's okay Will… it's just, you have um, a bit of sauce all over you face." He tried to look down, and find the sauce on his face but couldn't. Emma licked her lips, before reaching out with the wipe, and wiping his face gently.

"There…" Her voice was humble, as she had flashbacks of the day where she wiped mustard off his chin. Slowly, she pulled her hand back as Will gazed at her, pretty noticeably.

"Thanks, um…"

She was falling in, more than she had wanted to. "I gotta get going. I'm pretty sure C- Carl is waiting..." Her voice was shaky, as she stood up, grabbing her coat and tucking it under her arm. She said goodbye to the kids, and thanked them for a nice a time. Will just gave her a light smile, as she left. He began to drum on his legs, upset that she had left to abruptly. It was really confusing to him, what's she was thinking and all. Before he could read her like a book, however, they had changed a lot over the past couple months. He slid his hand down the cushion of the booth, feeling something other than leather. It was her hat. Carefully he picked it up, feeling the softness of it, and got out of his seat.

"Be right back guys…" They all nodded to him, and began to laugh as he jogged his way to the exit.

"He's chasing after her now, just wow…" Puck said, watching it in irony.

Will had got out of the doors of BreadstiX, and turned his head to the side, to see Emma making her way down the sidewalk. He sprinted behind her, "Hey Em! Wait up!" She had heard someone say something, but wasn't sure what exactly. She turned around and saw Will coming towards him.

"Will? What happened?"

He stopped about a foot in front of her, and took a second to catch his breath. "Nothing- you just, left your hat." He pulled it from behind is back and held it up in front of her. With his other hand, he pinched the hat on both sides, and began to slowly lift it over her head. Emma's eyes began to float upward, as she felt the hand, and his fingers, slide down her curly hair, letting him place it on her head gently. Even the warmest hat couldn't stop the chills going down her spine. Will gulped, moving his hands away.

"There…" He said, just as Emma did earlier. She looked at him wide eyed, feeling her heart pound. After a few seconds, she blinked her eyes multiple times, trying to get out of her haze, and turned around, running lightly on her heels, towards her car. Will watched in wonder, licking his lips, before also turning around and making his way back into the restaurant. He walked in briskly, clearly distracted.

"What went down Mr. Schue?" Finn asked curiously, knowing that Emma had seemed a little off, but Will came in looking even more confused.

He looked and Finn and shook his head. "Nothing at all."

The boy shrugged, and reached for another breadstick. "She seemed a little uneasy tonight… strange."

Will looked up at him, intrigued by the observation. "How so, Finn?"

"Well…" Finn smiled a little bit, thinking what he was saying didn't really matter, but it did. "I don't know… ever since she married that dentist dude, she seemed like totally confident- like a guidance counselor, but not tonight. It's probably nothing, just more over analyzing things I guess." He looked at Rachel, unsure. "I used the right word, right?"

"Mhm…" She said, making a huge lecture out of it.

Will's mind easily drifted from their conversation. Finn wasn't the brightest of the bunch, but he had a point. It was a very good point a matter of fact. Before any of this, Emma seemed very timid; especially when she had those hidden feelings for him which he took so long to notice. Then, she met Carl, and had seemed so certain about everything. But after this past week, that seemed to change. Maybe, just maybe, her feelings about Will were starting to change too. He couldn't help but feel her leaning his way, once more.

**

* * *

**

**Author's Note:** That was kinda hard to write, but in the meantime, I was able to get alot of ideas in my head for upcoming chapters, including have Sue shake things up a little ;O sounds fun, but for now am I gonna leave the really important stuff for a couple of the next few chapters. For now, in the next chapter, Will is going to do a little something at Glee rehearsal that makes Emma swoon, and give her a little offer, leading up to the chapter after that, so please stay in tune and review! Thanks for reading :)


	8. The Power of Song

_Helloo. Thanks to all the people reading this story, and giving so much support with the awesome reviews :D I made this chapter shorter, because well I am saving what I wanna write out for next chapter. So I tried to make this chapter a bit amusing, with a little fluff, but it's nothing important, hopefully you wont be disappointed though, cause I can guarantee you'll wanna stick around for chapter 9. Like I said, I gotta give some time in between now and nationals... sooo enjoy! ^^_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 8: The Power of Song**

The night went by slowly, as Will laid bed, barely able to sleep. He felt a mix of emotions, all conflicting ones. He felt joy, having Emma close to him again. He felt sorrow because she was Carl. The dentist had made her happy though, and he had to accept that and hope for the best for her. Still, something seemed different with her, especially considering the different talks they had, where Will was giving her advice. He didn't want to destroy a relationship, especially Emma's, but he could tell things weren't all they were cracked up to be. And when the time came, he would be there to pick of the pieces.

He never took much time to get ready in the morning, easily finding some kind of vest to slip on, and grabbing a muffin. With some of the Cheerio's budget cut, they had coffee back in the teachers' lounge, so he would get his daily boost there. Will drove to the school in his run down car, totally used to the sound of the screeching muffler which the kids scoff at every time he pulled in the parking lot. He put on his sunglasses, and walked to the school, with a smile on his face. He decided to take the long way to his office, by passing the Guidance Office first. Emma wasn't normally in there very early, but he was sure he would bump into her. Will peered down the hallway, through swelling amount students filling the school. At the end of the hall, he found who he was looking for.

"Hey Em!" He said, sounding very bubbly.

"Hi Will…" She looked at him, from head to toe and then looked down at herself. "We um, match today."

Will looked at the light blue sweater vest he was wearing, and at her light blue cardigan. He laughed, pointing at her and himself like an idiot. She made a weird smile and just shook her head. Will scratched the back of his head, and continued nervously, "Right… well, I was making sure that you'd be at glee rehearsal after school?"

Emma smiled. "I wouldn't miss it for anything," sounding assuring.

Will put two thumbs up in the air. "Great, see you then." In his mind though, his fist shot up in the air. Quickly, he brushed past her, and began walking to his office.

She turned around, and watched him walk away. "Yup," Emma said under her breath, taking a big sigh.

The bell couldn't ring fast enough. Last period was always a drag, because well the kids didn't feel like doing anything, and neither did the teachers. They all just sat and talking and threw paper balls at each other like a bunch of animals. Will looked up at the clock and rubbed his hands together.

"5 seconds…" Finally, the bell had rung. "Have a great day everybody." He said enthusiastically, before leaving the class room behind the group of kids. He walked briskly to the choir room, some of the glee kids had already been in their seats. He placed his bag on the piano, and rummaged through it, looking for the piece they would do today. When he looked up, he saw Emma standing in the doorway.

"Come in." He let out a half smile across his face, as she entered the room, with her heals hitting the floor. Quickly, he grabbed a nearby chair, and slid it towards the side of the piano. Will went up to her, and guided her to seat, sitting her down gently. Emma waited patiently for the group to start, folding her hands.

"Alright guys… so getting to Nationals, is all about the teamwork. And last night, I got this idea in my head, because it's something we haven't really done officially. This week, we'll have the boys and girls split up, and have you guys try and cover some of the most iconic pop groups of your time… not mine."

The kids all laughed, knowing he usually would want to pick some old, adult contemporary song, which they weren't always into.

"Isn't that kind of hard, Mr Schue, I mean… everyone in those kind of groups, were awesome, and they could dance which is something we don't fall in the category of…" Finn was always pessimistic about everything, and felt he needed to make that a point.

"Yeah, well… that's why today, I'm gonna show you how it goes. Believe it or not, I am familiar with some 'cool' songs." Will held up a stack of sheet music, and began passing it out to the boys. They took a minute to read over it.

Puck stood up in protest, "Dude, this song isn't new, it's by NSYNC"

Will stopped him and spoke with a cheesy grin on his face. "Not exactly, but... it has Justin Timberlake in it." The girls all laughed, because that's who they always imagined to be Mr Schue's idol. "So guys, everyone sing the backups, and Puck and Artie to take a solo in the 2nd verse." The shook their heads, and made their way to the front of the risers, were they stood in a line. "And follow my lead." Will said, pointing at the band, signaling them to start playing.

"_You're all I ever wanted_

_You're all I ever needed, yeah_

_So tell me what to do now_

_Cause, I,I,I,I, I want you back"_

The girls all started clapping along with the beat and Emma joined them, wanting to see where this was gonna go. Will stood in the front of the guys, doing some basic hip hop steps with his feet and arms. They tried following along, until they did their own thing as Will started the next verse. He began to do light movements around the room. Then he made his way towards Emma, who was smiling from enjoyment.

"_It's hard to say I'm sorry_

_It's hard to make the things I did undone_

_A lesson I've learned too well for sure_

He rocked back and forth, leaning over her shoulder. Her face had a tint of red, because it was clear he was trying to get some kind of message across, and she really believed he was a great performer. After the first couple lines, he rejoined the rest of the guys.

_So don't hang up the phone now_

_I'm trying to figure out just what to do_

_I'm going crazy without you"_

Will clenched his fist, and held it over his heart, before winking at Emma whose jaw had dropped, unsure how to react.

"_You're all I ever wanted_

_You're all I ever needed (yeah)_

_So tell me what to do now_

_When I want you back"_

They continued the rest of the song, not interrupted by all of the squeals coming from the girls who sat there too, in awe. After the last note, Will jumped up in the air, and landed in a half split, like he had done in 'Bust a Move'. He bent back, laughing, before taking a few breaths and getting back on his feet. The girls began to clap, and the guys all did their bows and gestures. Will didn't turn around to them though. Still catching his breath, he looked at Emma, who was clapping subtly, letting him know he did great. She had always known he was great at what he did, especially when it was for her, like when he gave her dance lessons for the wedding that never happened.

"So you guys got the idea?"

The kids all nodded, with a "Yeah Mr. Schue" thrown in.

"Good, you guys are dismissed." With a flick of a hand, he shooed them away. One by one, they filed out, some ready to just get home, and others ready to get started on their piece. Emma stood up from her seat, and walked over to Will.

"Well, that wasn't what I expected."

He chuckled. "Yeah… um, how'd you like it?" Will said nervously, hoping she was impressed.

Emma looked to the ground, with a small grin on her face. "Well seeing as how you looked like a JT impersonator… it was great." She said childishly, giving him a little nudge on the shoulder. In all seriousness though, she loved it. Her mind flashed back to when he did that mash up directed towards Rachel, and she sat in and watched. The only downside was though that this time she was sure the song was directed to her. The conflicted feelings she had were heard to keep hidden, and Will was making it harder and harder. Really though, she didn't know what was best for her, and hoped that soon, she would realize what she wanted because she didn't to hurt him or Carl.

He let out a sigh of relief and smiled. Now that he got that over with, there was one more piece of business to get to. "So Em, have you checked your e-mail lately?"

She shook her head. "No I haven't, why?"

He shrugged his shoulders, and turned around to pick up the left pieces of sheet music. "Well, they are looking for chaperones for the spring dance this Friday and-" He looked over his shoulder at her, "You should come… you know?"

She raised her eyebrows. "I um, go every year…" Her voice sounded innocent, as she explained herself. "As the guidance counselor, it seems like something I should do. But, I just kind of sit in the back…"

Will walked over to hear, surprised. "You don't talk to anyone… or dance?" Emma shook her head, slightly embarrassed. No wonder he had never noticed her there, she was so shy and humble. Still, that was one thing he really liked about her. He put his hands on her shoulder, with a comforting look. "You should try it… it would be fun."

Emma nodded, and responded quickly. "I know, I know… I just don't do that in front of people, I get all nervous, and probably make a fool of myself. It's really bad, to be so, so insecure about that stuff but-"

He raised his finger, putting it near her lips, shushing her. Emma turned her head away. "It's not a bad thing at all… I mean if you aren't used to being out there… then it takes time. You'll get out of your shell soon enough. And if you don't, that's fine too, trust me." Will spoke to her softly, giving her a sense of assurance. Emma looked up at him uncomfortably, and bit her lip, contemplating the thought. She really liked how understanding he was, when it came to her problems. "So, what do you say? I'm pretty sure it gets lonely back there. And if not, then I'd be more than happy to join you."

"I'd like that…" Emma said, letting Will let go of her.

He smiled softly, "Good, I can't wait." They looked at each other awkwardly, before Will figured there wasn't much else to say at the moment. "Well, guess- I'll see you then." He licked his lips before walking away rather briskly, grabbing his bag by the strap along the way.

The whole situation had been overwhelming; with a flow of emotions they had to keep inside. Realizing now, more than ever how much he wanted to be with Emma, when something was keeping them apart was like a bullet through the chest. He thought about how stupid he had been before; giving up the chance to be with her, and how he wanted to be the one she came home to everyday. He wanted one more chance to make it work, and he couldn't wait much longer.

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_**Author's Note: **That was a simple chapter and im sorry about that. Next chapter though, will be the start of the rising action towards the climax of the story, so you wont be disappointed if you check out the next update which will fast forward a couple days to the dance, with an epic moment filled with all kinds of stuff xD please review and thanks sooo much reading (:_


	9. Under These Neon Lights

_Hi to all the readers xD This chapter took a little longer to get out cause I am in my school's musical so and tonight is our first performance so this week has been so hectic. I finally finished it, and this chapter is like, I guess a good word to describe it is "intense"... yeah, well it plays a pivotal point in the story and I hope you like reading it, cause I am really confident about this chapter, so enjoy and please review! :D_

_-Cheena_

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**Chapter 9: Under These Neon Lights**

Emma could hear the loud music coming from the gym in the hall. Eagerly, she walked towards the commotion because seeing the kids all getting along and happy made her feel good. The lights were dim, with some spotlights coming off the stage where the band played on and off behind the DJ. There were tons of kids, scattered everywhere, either dancing or just having conversation with each other. She examined the area, looking for a place to sit. Through the people and the many balloons which were tied to the chairs, she saw a table in the back. It was kind of off in the corner, but that was fine because she didn't mind it back there. She could enjoy the view and be by herself. As she walked through the different crowds, she also looked to see if Will was anywhere, but he wasn't. She knew he would be there, and it was likely that he was just late, because that's just how he was. She laughed to herself and took a seat, resting her hands on the table and waited patiently.

Will stretched himself, trying to look at his tie in the rear view mirror of his car. He fixed it to perfection before being satisfied. "Good to go…" Rubbing his hands through his thick hair, he made it nice and curly. He wanted to look his best, because tonight was important. Anxiously, he got out of his car and hastily walked into the school, sharply turning the corners to get to the gym as quickly as possible. He hated being late, but he never made any effort to be on top of things. As he reached the gym, he poked his head inside, and scanned the room. She definitely wasn't on the dance floor, and she wasn't standing around either. Will let out a sigh, before walking in casually, not wanting to seem too hasty. Maybe, he thought, he should just chill a while before finding her, so it wasn't so obvious. Not too long though, because he made a promise that he intended to keep. In the midst of things though, he felt like a confused, nervous, teenager. He laughed at the thought, and decided to just go with the flow. For a bit, he leaned against the wall, by the punch table, bopping his head to the music. Then one of the glee kids approached him.

"Hey Mr Schue!"

He smiled, "Hey Mercedes, having a good time I hope?"

She laughed, looking behind her on the dance floor. "You could say that… you know Mrs. P is back there right?"

That kind of caught him off guard. Will raised his eyebrows, "Oh, no I didn't." Putting his hands in pockets, he tried to act cool. "Maybe I'll say hi to her later or something… thanks."

"Sure thing." Mercedes shook her head, and turned around to find Tina and Rachel calling her to back to the dance floor. Quickly, she made her way over and Will began to pour himself some punch. After a few seconds actually, he briskly made his way through the conundrum of kids and teachers and around the tables toward the back of the house. He stood on his toes, looking over someone's shoulders, and caught a glimpse of red hair. Taking a deep breath, he went up to the table.

"Anyone sitting here?"

Emma looked up at him upon hearing his voice, and lit up on the inside. She looked around at the table, where there were just empty seats and unhampered table sets. She shook her head, and will swung around the table, grabbing a seat next to her.

"Hi Will…" She said, smiling shyly. He pulled down his sleeves, and looked back at her with a grin on his face.

"Hey Em." He looked at his watch, and frowned a little. "Sorry about keeping you waiting…. How long have you been back here?"

Emma turned her head away slightly. "A while… I don't mind though. It's um, nice to be able to just sit her by myself… and stuff."

Will shook his head, kind of agreeing with her. Still, it was nice to have a friend around. He picked up his cup, and brought it to his face, before shifting his eyes towards Emma, who was looking at him as she sat there awkwardly. _'Why didn't I think of grabbing her a drink too?'_ He brought the cup back down to the table, and gently slid it over towards her.

"You're probably thirsty, so I um... got you this." He really wanted to make sure he treated her best he possibly could, if he wanted to leave a good mark for the night. Emma looked down at the cup, and then back at him.

She shook her hands, "Oh no, its fine I um-"

Will stopped her, "Just drink it, it's good and it's um, clean." Well he wasn't so sure about that, but it was under some of that annoying clear plastic cover stuff, so he could only assume the best. He glanced over at Emma who cautiously took a sip of the punch. After taking a gulp, she looked at him and mouthed the word, _'thanks'. _He just shook his head.

"So, what took you so-so... long?" Even she acted like it didn't matter, she was kind of getting lonely back there. Will tightened his jaw and shrugged slowly.

"It was uh, that long…" Immediately she shook her head, making him aware. "Oh well traffic… but when I got here, some glee kids came to talk to me about uh- things, songs… something like that." He began waving his hands around as he explained himself, looking even more confused than Emma was. Anxiously, he began to tap his foot, trying to find a way to just relax and have a normal conversation like they usually would.

"Anyway… got any new pamphlets?" He managed to sound a little enthusiastic, shuttering on the inside. Emma looked at him curiously, and shook her head.

"Nope…" She was slightly lost at the awkwardness, and wanted to try and help fight it too. "So um… any new Sue-antics against the glee club?"

He shrugged his shoulder with a slight smirk on his face. "Not at all… it's funny though. I kind of miss all that." Emma's eyes opened wide, shocked by what she just heard. Will quickly tried to redeem himself. "Not that I enjoyed it or anything… it was kind of fun watching her plans come right back at her." He cleared his throat, as Emma let out a gentle laugh.

"That's… interesting. I'd be careful what you wish for though… she won't stop once she starts something."

Will leaned on the table, resting his head in the palm of his hand. "I guess you're right…" Blankly, he stared out into the gym, which was slowly losing its pulse, calming down as it was towards the end of the night. The last half hour dragged on, even with each other's company. But still, they were fine with just being in each other's presence. Eventually, the sea of people, made its way out, leaving maybe a couple of janitors on the evening shift, and them. Wearily, Will got up from his seat and stretched.

"Are you staying for cleanup duty?" He let out a huge yawn, as he ended his sentence.

Emma looked around at the empty gym. "Well... I guess I um, have no choice." She didn't mind cleaning though, it was a regular happening for her, and she liked to feel the accomplishment of keeping something germ free. She stood up, surveying the mess. Just some dirty table covers, cups and napkins on the floor, and little party items. Figuring she would start with the table, she picked up her mess and began walking to the trash can.

Will followed behind her hesitantly. "Do you, need any help maybe…?"

She turned around to look at him, and made a worried face. "Well…"

"I promise not to use window cleaner on the floor this time…" He said shyly, thinking back to when he was janitor, and they had their moment on the science classroom. Emma showed a childish smile and shrugged.

"Sure, that'd be nice." For brief moment, they were smiling at each other before Will rubbed his hands together, breaking it. "So um, let's start…" Honestly, he didn't know where to start. Like a lost puppy, he followed Emma to the storage room in the room, where they found all kinds of cleaning products. Emma grabbed some gloves, and pulled out a pair for Will who accepted them graciously. They wheeled out a cart, pulling it aside. She made her way back over to the tables, and start picking up cups. Will did the same, staying close by. He couldn't help but wanting to be near her, as she was so gentle and warming. After a bit, Emma began to catch the glances she was receiving before saying anything.

"Will… maybe we should kind of work on something different… like maybe you could get the tables cleaned. It will go by much faster, I'm sure."

Feeling a little bad, he just shook his head in agreement. "Yup, you're right, sorry…" Hastily he began tearing table covers off the tables, and throwing them in a large trash bag. He wasn't big on cleaning, but he was doing it for Emma. He would do anything for her. Feeling the time starting to slip away, he got done the last table, and ran up to her as she finished up.

"Why don't we take a um, break. It's getting a little late anyway…" He cleared his throat, awaiting from a response. Emma made her way to the trash can, throwing out the last couple of things she found on the floor.

"Yeah… We should probably just go, cause-"

Will ran in front of her, with a hysterical look on his face. "Actually, Em- I have a better idea."

She looked at him uneasy, before asking what it was. He was full of surprises; some of which that were good, others… not so much. "Like, what exactly?"

He turned his head away, kind of nervous. "Well, we never got up and well… how about a dance?" He looked up at her, who seemed a little nervous also. "Just you and me, no one else around to watch… what do you say?"

Emma bit her lip, thinking about it for a moment. When they first formed a relationship, she had always wanted to have a dance with him, one that didn't involve a wedding with someone else. She wasn't sure how it would go, or what it would lead to, but she really didn't want to let the chance slip by her. She answered her voice a little shaky… "Okay… you win. But we don't have any, um, music."

He shook his head, "Actually, I have that covered." He told her to wait a minute, as he jogged towards the little boom box, sitting at the edge of the stage. As he got towards it, he angled himself opposite of her, so she wouldn't see him pulling out a cd from his pocket. He took it out, and stared at it for a moment, before placing it carefully into the disk holder. Taking a deep breath, he pressed play and turned as a quickly as he could to get back to Emma, who was standing their patiently. Lightly, he grabbed her hand, pulling her towards the center of the gym floor. Little did they know that they were not alone…

Gently, he placed on hand on her shoulder and the other around her waist. Hesitantly, she did the same. They let 'The Scientist' by Coldplay, take them away under the different colored, dim lights that illuminated dance floor. Will lowered his head, gazing at her the whole time. Emma slowly turned her head to the side, and let it lean in towards him. He felt the soft hair press against his chest as they moved effortlessly to the music, swaying side to side. Those four minutes seemed to last a lifetime, as Will danced there with her, feeling like he was on top of the world, letting the lyrics spill out his emotions.

'_Nobody said it was easy _

_Aww It's such a shame for us to part _

_Nobody said it was easy _

_No one ever said it would be so hard _

_I'm goin' back to the start _

_Ahhoooooooooooo'_

As the last note of the song went on, she slowly lifted her head, and looked up to him. Will looked back down, feeling an overwhelming urge. Now seemed like the time, and he didn't want to wait any longer. Feeling his heart pound within him, he closed his eyes and leaned in towards Emma, gently kissing her on the lips. For a moment, Emma couldn't help but a feel an innocent joy come upon her. She slowly stood up on her toes, not pulling back right away. It felt right, but it was wrong, and she didn't want that. She broke away from him, and closed her eyes tightly. Will took a step back, letting it all sink in. He knew how he felt, but it dawned on him that maybe it wasn't what Emma wanted. She began to shake a little, before covering her face, letting a tear stream down her cheek. Will gently grabbed her hands pulling them away from her face.

"No, no… I'm so sorry Em. I really am… please, just don't cry. God, I should have done that, I just-"

She stopped him, turning away, not knowing the look on her face and what it showed. "Don't say anything, Will. I um… it was my fault. I-I really shouldn't be here, doing this, I can't…" She began to choke up, more than before, feeling a surge of confusion crashing down on her. Not knowing if she could handle it, she turned from him abruptly, before trying to walk away. Will grabbed her arm in a split second, not wanting to leave it unresolved.

"We need to talk about this… now. I won't be able to go to sleep tonight, seeing you this way." Softly, he raised his hand, and wiped a tear from her face. Afraid, she shook her head, not wanting to look him in the eyes. Taking their time, he led her to the closest table, and sat her down smoothly. She took deep breaths, trying to regain some composure. Will crouched down, feeling really bad about it all, and wanted to help her find some closure.

"Emma… I- I shouldn't have done that, okay? I just, really felt… like it was something I wanted, for me... and I didn't really think about how you felt, and when I say I'm sorry, I mean it, from the bottom of my heart." She kept her eyes, glued to the ground, absorbing every word, but not showing any of it. Will didn't know what to say, but the truth. "I- I love you Emma… and I don't expect you to say it back, but please say something, let me understand, how you feel."

She wiped her nose, and looked at him, he eyes clouded. She didn't know what she wanted, or how she felt, but she cared for him, she knew that much. She let out a deep sigh, so she could say what she had to clearly. "I am... um, really, really, confused and…" Emma trailed off, not having the right words to say. As she looked at him finally, she could see the hurt in his eyes, and couldn't help but feel responsible. She had Carl, but she wanted more, she wanted him, but knew it wasn't that easy. As hard as she tried to put her feelings aside, she just couldn't. And she realized that he was in pain, just as much, if not more than her.

He looked at her intently, just having to know one thing. "Are… you h- happy?" He could barely get the word out, but he had too. Why else would she be so lost? He hated seeing her that way, and hoped maybe he could change that, if she let him. Emma bit her lip and closed her eyes tightly, feeling so unsure, and knowing that whatever she said, would have a lot of significance.

"I… don't-"

"Wait." Will stopped her. He wasn't sure, but he had known what she would probably say. As much as it gave him relief, he cringed at the thought of having her say it herself, knowing how much it hurt her. "Don't answer that… I shouldn't have asked. You can tell me- later if you want, but not now. I see how hard it is for you, and I can't have you feel that way on account of me."

Emma loosened her expression, wanting to just let out a shy smile, as she let his kind words sink in. He cared so much about her, she knew that. Still, she didn't know how much she could give in return. She grew a little tense, as Will grabbed on to her hands, resting them in her lap. His eyes were wide, with anxiety, and she felt the same. Will gulped, trying to find a way to put this. He didn't want to come off as inconsiderate, but he hoped she would understand what he was going to say.

"I know, you are still trying to- figure this out. And I don't want to push you, but… I'm asking you, to please-" He held on a little tighter, wanting to just get it out. "Come to New York, to Nationals… with us, with- me." Her eyes opened wide. She couldn't grasp what he was saying, knowing the importance of was he was asking. Will quivered a little before going on. "And when it's all done and over with, maybe you'll know what you really want- and what you need. I know it's a lot to ask, but give it a chance… and whatever happens, I think I- I mean we… will both feel better, and more sure of our feelings. Until then… I promise, never to take advantage of our relationship again… just give it a chance."

Emma nodded, letting him know that she would figure it out soon. This time, she let the tears stream down her face, not knowing if they were built on sadness, or joy, from his understanding of how she felt. Will let go finally, feeling a bit of closure. He hoped that now, their journey would reach a point, where they both feel sure of what they wanted, and nothing would hold them back. Slowly, he got up from the uncomfortable position, and clenched his fist, taking deep breaths, before he could finally show a bit of relief on his face. He looked down at Emma, who was clearly uneasy, but would be facing a realization soon enough. He knew it was for the best, and was glad to finally help the situation for the better.

"Are you going to be alright, getting home and everything…?"

She shook her head, and looked up at him with a small slightly, barely visible, but very clear. "I um, think so." He smiled back, feeling he should probably go now and let her have some time to herself. "Thank you, Will." Her voice sounded more certain for the first time in their conversation, being completely honest. Never before had anyone said something to close to her heart like that.

"See you Monday…" He said his goodbye, and parted ways from her. He could her breathing as he walked away, not daring to turn back. Picking up the pace, Will walked briskly at the gym, slamming his fist against the wall, feeling a ton of emotions he couldn't comprehend.

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**Author's Note: **Phew... that's the end of this chapter! Hope you all thought it was good read, not too short, but not too long, right? I'm sooo upset about the hiatus but writing this will ease the lack of Wemma for a month lol I will begin writing the next chapter probably tomorrow and get it out by Sunday. I would give you a heads up on what the next chapter is about, but I would give it all away xP thanks for reading and please give me some feedback! thanks btw to the readers that keep coming back (:


	10. Downhill

_Woot! Chapter 10 is up :D Thanks for the reviews and to the people still reading this story. Warning... this is the beginning of a little Wemma angst for the next 2 chapters, but what's Wemma without a little tension lol it'll get much better though after this little obstacle in the story, so dont worry. So read and enjoy :)_

_-Cheena_

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Chapter 10: Downhill **

"I need to see Dr Carl Howell."

The secretary looked up at the tall woman. "I'm sorry, but you have to make an appointment."

"And you would deny an American citizen the right to proper dental care? Shame on you, I could shut this place down in a minute, I know members of the senate."

A bit the nervous, the secretary, began looking through the computer. "I um… I will try to let you see him as soon possible. Sorry for any inconvenience…"

"Make it quick, this place reeks of failure."

After about two minutes of giving dirty looks to anyone who walked in the office, she was directed to a door at the end of the hallway. Quickly, she pushed the door open, and walked in, interrupting the dentist from his work. He turned around to look at her, very confused.

"Oh, what can I do for you, uh…?"

"Sue Sylvester, don't forget the name." She went over the green chair where any normal patient would for a meeting with the dentist. Carl leaned against the counter, baffled.

"Sue… I don't believe I had you down for an appointment, today, let alone ever…"

"Well things change… speaking of change, there is something I need to discuss with you." Casually, she leaned back in the seat and opened her mouth wide, pointing to it.

Carl put on a pair of gloves, and moved towards her to pull the x-ray camera down above her. He turned on the light, before continuing with the conversation. "And what would this be about? I certainly don't know you all that well, so I'm curious."

Sue scoffed, "This about someone we know mutually… if you want to get to specific's, it's about your red headed wife."

His eyes opened wide as he took a step back, unsure of what she was getting too. "You mean Emma?"

"Yeah, Erma, Edna, whatever…"

Carl took a step back to process the whole idea of what Sue was getting at. "I don't think anything about me and Emma concerns you, so please, I'm sure I have other patients waiting." He didn't want to hear a word of what Sue was saying, but still couldn't help to wonder.

She shook her head, "My teeth perfect anyway, so fair enough…" Quickly, she sat up on the seat and straightened her warm up suit, "Your marriage can go down the drain for all I care." Sue looked at Carl with a smirk, as she headed towards the door. Hastily, he walked towards her, stopping her from leaving.

"W- what do you mean?" He knew that their relationship might have been a little rocky the past couple weeks, but how could Sue have known anything about it? When he first met her, he saw how nasty she was, but still, she didn't seem like the type to waste her time by coming there if it wasn't something important. Unless Sue was stalking them, it must be something she had been noticing at the school. And the only obstacle at the place between him and Emma was…. "Will Schuester? Does this have something to do with him?"

"Bingo buddy. He is stepping into _your_ territory." Sue sighed, with a forced face of sincerity.

He turned his head, feeling agitated from what he had just heard. "Why are you telling me this? And what makes you sure, huh?"

Sue took a step towards him, and lightly tapped his shoulder. He swatted her hand away, moving away from her to the other side of the room. "Well for one, you asked. Two, I think all that hair product is messing with Schuester's head. He probably thinks I am done trying to destroy him and that misfit bunch, but not at all. I let him think that, and keep his guard down until Nationals."

Carl cut her off, "Okay, that's nice and all but- but what about him and… Emma?"

"Right… she still loves him. It's pretty obvious, especially after last night." She stopped herself before going on with a sarcastic tone, "Ooh, I think I went too far."

"Wait, what happened last night?" He hoped she wasn't lying, for the simple fact that what she was probably saying was true. He was always a bit skeptical about her feelings for Will, but thought maybe being married would put them aside.

"She was totally fawning over him." She rubbed her chin, thinking back to the previous night. "They stayed after to clean up the gym- after the dance, by their selves. Then Schuester pulls out this CD, and plays this oh, so cheesy song. They shared a dance and-"

"What happened after that?" He wasn't sure he was just angry or concerned.

Sue shrugged her shoulders. "Oh I don't know. I couldn't bear to watch, it was sickening." She let out a laugh, "I doubt anything happened after that. That guy is just a scarred puppy, and your 'wife' is just so confused. It's a shame really." Shaking her head in disappointment, she looked at him ready to finish the conversation. "Anything else?"

Carl held his hands to his face, before running them through his hair, trying to compose himself. "What do I do? If I say anything to Emma… it'll only push her away." Changing Emma's feelings seemed a little late in the game, so he was at a lost. He loved her though, and didn't want to let her go, especially to the satisfaction of Will.

"Carl, Carl…. All you have to do is confront him. Put him in his place, you know?" Sue looked at her watch, "Oh look at the time, I better get going." She paused, as she slowly opened the door, "Good luck doctor."

He closed his eyes tightly, and nodded. Was it a good idea, to listen to her? She did have a point though, and it seemed like the only reasonable option.

* * *

Will sat in his office alone, in the dark, tapping his pencil lightly on a stack of papers, unable to focus. He came in this morning, without even stopping by the teacher's lounge for coffee. He knew Emma would be in there, and as much as it killed him not to see her, he wanted to lay a low for a little. They hadn't talked all weekend of course, and trying to talk to her would be really awkward. He also didn't want to seem he was trying to force her his way, because that wouldn't be fair to her. He looked up to the clock; he still had 25 minutes until the next period, which was when he had his first class for the day. His train of though was interrupted, when he heard a knock on the door. His face lit up, hoping that it was maybe it was Emma who had decides to come to him, but as the door opened his face turned into one of distraught.

"C- Carl? What are you doing here?" He sat up in his seat, feeling uneasy about the unexpected arrival.

Carl shut the door behind him, "We need to talk Schuester."

Will looked down, and tightened his jaw. "There's nothing to talk about, so-"

"The hell there isn't. You know exactly why I am here." He said loudly, before dropping in the volume, not wanting anyone to hear in the halls.

Completely confused and amused at the same time Will shrugged his shoulders, being very a blunt. "I really, really don't know what you are trying to get to Carl."

He let out a little chuckle, before taking a step towards Will's desk. "Emma, you're not that stupid, and neither am I. Look, I'm going to ask you one more time, to back off. I'm sorry your relationships might be failures, but don't try to interfere with mine."

Will stood up, feeling some type of way. Carl had gone too far, and Will felt the need to defend himself to some extent. "Look, I don't know what's got you going overboard, or whatever, but that is none of your business. And as far as Emma is concerned, there's nothing you have to worry about." Sure, something happened at the dance, but he knew that, that was all it was, and nothing more. At least until Emma said so.

"Oh I think I do." Carl feeling irritated, cut to the chase. "I know about the 'dance' you two had. And I don't think it was something innocent, right Will?"

A million thoughts began racing through Will's mind. He knew that Emma had told Carl a lot, but he never would have thought that she would have told him about what had happened that evening. This was really bad, and Will looked really bad. He didn't know what to say at this point. "Look, it might have over stepping my boundaries, I'll admit that, but-" He stopped for a moment to think. "It's nothing… Emma Is your 'property', I get that and-"

"Woah! who said anything about her being my 'property'? I think that's a pretty out of line accusation. I care about her, a lot." Carl added, not going to let Will try to make him look like that bad guy.

Will closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Right, but if that was the case, I don't think we would be here right now, and Emma wouldn't be in the place she is in right now-" He stopped, realizing it might not have been a good idea to bring that into the debate.

Carl's eyes widened. "What place? Don't think you know her better than I do. She picked me, because I was there for her when she needed someone, after _you_, broke her heart. I know she may still have some feelings for you, but I don't think she would leave me because of that. She's better than that, she knows right from wrong."

Slowly, he walked over to the door, and opened it. "You're right, she is better than that. And she certainly is better than to let someone like you, keep her from being happy." He extended his arm, and pointed towards the doorway. "You can leave now. I think we are done here." They exchanged intense looks at each other, before Carl swiftly made his way out, and headed towards the nearest exit. Will slammed the door behind him and went back to his desk. He rested his elbows on the desk, holding his head tightly. After a couple minutes, he picked up the phone and called Coach Beiste.

They phone rang twice, before the opposite end picked up. "Hey, it's Will."

"What's up buddy?"

"You think you could cover my Spanish class next period? I have something I need to take care of."

"Um, sure. Is everything alright?"

"I hope so, and thanks. I'll talk to you later." Quickly, he hung up the phone, and ran out of his office, and down the hall.

* * *

"Emma!" Without being invited in, Will entered her office, and leaned on the back of the seat across from her.

A bit startled, she put down her pen, and stopped doing her paperwork. "Will, um, w- what's going on?" She was very confused, and still, not sure if she would be able to even have a normal conversation with him, let alone something that seemed to urgent.

"You told Carl-" He licked his lips, regaining his breath. "About the… dance?" He felt himself shake a little, still at a lost with the whole situation.

Emma shook her head frantically, placing a hand on her chest. "I –I… no, I didn't tell him."

Will took a step back, not sure how to react. "Then… how did he know?"

She looked at him, with even more shock in her expression than his. "Oh gosh… he knew?" her face got really red, as she went into a panic. She hadn't told him anything about it. Who could have, no one had saw them, did they?

Will pulled the chair back a bit, and sat down. He leaned on the desk, ashamed. For one, he had assumed Emma had told Carl, when she clearly didn't, and that someone else knew. This was worse than he thought it could get.

"Sorry, I thought you might have told him… I shouldn't have doubted my trust in you." He took a sigh of relief, and Emma stared at him intently, with one question on her mind.

"Wait Will… h-how did you know he found out?"

He shook his head, playing the events in his office just recently in his mind. "He came to my office and-"

Her eyes opened wide, "He was here?"

"Yeah…" Will looked down at the ground, "He was really, really mad… and he has a right to be."

Emma turned away, feeling ashamed. He did have a right, and what was even worse was that he didn't hear it from her. Not all hope was lost thought. She gulped, before bringing up what she had try to get out of her mind all weekend. "Did he mention, um… the kiss?"

Will looked up at her, with a bit of hurt in the facial expression, but it then turned into a look of relief. "No… he didn't. That's really strange." She bit her lip, and nodded. Letting reality set in, she buried her face into her hands, and leaned on the desk. He felt sorry for her, knowing that this would hit her the most.

"So um, what are you going to do?" He asked, trying to sound as compassionate as possible.

She looked up at him, with despair. "I have to talk to him about it I guess…. I can't let this just go past." Holding back any tears, she took a few deep breaths. Will was just watching her, feeling responsible for her pain. Maybe Carl was right, about her being better off with him.

"Will, is there anything else I should know… about what C-Carl said to you?"

He really didn't want to bring up the rest of the conversation, especially right now. "No… that was all." He planted his hands on the arm rests of the chair, and pushed himself up. Slowly, he walked over to the door, before turning around to take one last look at Emma before he left. "Will I see you at Glee Club today?"

Emma stood up, her face a bit disappointed. "I um… I think I need to go home, and sort things out with-"

Will nodded his head, "I understand…" He looked at Emma, who was looking down at the ground, her face hidden by her hair, as she cupped her hands behind her back, innocently. "Just… let me know how it goes, please. Good Luck Emma." He let out a gently smile, assuring her that he would be there for her, before leaving briskly. Watching the door close behind him, she sat down at her desk, and rocked back and forth, closing her eyes, waiting for this all the come to an end.

* * *

**Author's Note:** lol thats the end of this chapter, it was kind of weird writing it cause it had a ton of dialog, and I had to get used to using other characters and keeping them in character and stuff xD hope you liked it, please, please review with your opinions and suggestions, it's all appreciated, like seriously ^^ I think I will have the next chapter out tuesday night, since my schedule is like finally clear for the rest of the year! thanks for reading :) *oops I forgot too give you a little info on the next chapter: I plan to have a emma and carl talk, and then a wemma one following up on that, which will be even bigger and kind of depressing but it will only make them stronger, trust me !*


	11. Confused

_Woo... I'm on a roll xD I finished this chapter last night, but wanted to wait a little bit to post it so here it is. As you read it, don't get freaked out either, cause its not over yet lol and thanks for the reviews guys, and the alerts and all. Stuff like that helps me find some motivation behind my writing. hope you enjoy :)_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 11: Confused**

She knew he would be angry, probably torn, but still, she had no idea how this was going to go. Nervously, Emma crept down the hallway that led to their condo. Shakily, she put her hand on the doorknob that was already unlocked and closed the door behind quietly. "Carl?" Emma walked into the living room, the tv was on, so he was home. She made her way to the spare room, and poked her head inside. He was sitting at his desk, going through some emails as usual.

"Hi Carl…"

He continued to type, and replied less enthusiastically than usual. "Hey Emma, how are you?"

"I'm, um fine. How about you?" She answered hesitantly, waiting for him to at least turn around. This time he didn't respond. She took a few steps into the room, and got into his peripheral vision, staying her distance. "You were at my job today, weren't you?"

Carl shook his head, and answered with a solemn tone. "Yes, I was. Schuester told you, right? Is that what you came in here to talk about?"

"I'm so sorry Carl, I-" Her voice trembled a bit, full of remorse.

"I wish you would have told me yourself… but at least you aren't going to lie about it forever I guess." He turned the computer screen off, and turned his chair to face her.

She didn't know exactly how he found out, so she figured she'd ask. "Who… told you?"

He closed his eyes, and tightened his expression. "It doesn't matter." He rubbed his hand though his thick hair, and scratched the back of his head. "What does matter though is why… I thought everything was going fine, I really did, and these past couple of weeks…"

Emma looked down the ground, and played with her fingers, not knowing what to tell him exactly. Should she tell him how she really felt, without making it seem she didn't care about him, when she still did. For a long time, she really was happy. Eventually, her feelings for Will crept up on her, like a surprise sneak attack. It wouldn't be far to Carl, to throw this all away though.

"I- I don't know why, it just kind of happened… it wasn't my intention, I promise you it wasn't."

"I going to try and believe that you are telling the truth… because I love you Emma. And I want this to work, for both of us. But if you still love him then I don't know… do you?" He cringed a bit, hoping for the best, but totally expecting the worst. He knew going into the marriage, things may have started off a little rocky, but over time he thought that would change. That Will's little tricks to try to break them apart, wouldn't work on Emma.

She wiped her misty eyes, not being able to look at him, without breaking down. "Carl, I- I care about you. And I wanted this to work so much, and I thought that I would be able t- to move on from… Will, but-"

"But, you haven't, and- you care about me, as you said, but not as much as you do… _him_." He wasn't going to say his name; the whole subject turned him into someone he wasn't. An angry person, and why be mad now when there was no point. He still felt a bit of hurt, because he tried, but maybe it wasn't worth it. "All this time… how could you lead me on like that?"

Emma chocked a little, "I didn't… oh gosh Carl, I'm just so, so… confused."

"Right..." Carl took a deep breath, before he stood up from his chair. "Well I hope everything works out for you Emma-" He paused, and took one last look at her. "I really do." He would gone up to her, but felt it wouldn't have helped at all, but only make the goodbye even worse. Carl briskly walked out the room, throwing the door closed behind him. Emma shuttered, below sliding down the wall behind, and sat on the floor, her face buried in her knees, as she let tears stream down her face, not sure what to do anymore.

* * *

Will had gone the whole day, in a pretty down mood. Even the glee kids questioned him, but he just rubbed it off. What had happened yesterday had him thinking all night. Not necessarily what had happened between him and Emma in her office, but just her. He wondered if she had talked to Carl about it, and how it went. School was almost over with, and he still hadn't seen her all day. It wasn't like her to miss a day at work. He was a little worried, and wanted to make sure she was alright. After the bell rang, he pulled his phone out and went over to the window so he could have better reception. He scrolled down his contacts, and touched her name, before quickly placing it against his ear. The phone had ringed many times, and still no answer. He tapped his foot, anxious for a click at the other end.

Emma made reached over to her nightstand, and looked at the caller ID. She saw Will's name, and dropped the phone on the ground next to the bed. She really didn't want to pick up the phone, but she couldn't ignore the call. Wearily, she reached down to the floor, and picked up the phone. Pressing the talk button at the last minute, and pressed the phone against her ear.

"H-Hello?"

Will let out a sigh of relief, and quickly replied. "Emma! Are you alright? I- I didn't see you today, and I kind of got worried."

She sat up, and leaned on the headboard, trying to quickly conjure up an excuse. "I um, didn't feel that good this morning…" It was kind of a lie, but in reality, she felt sick to her stomach. All day and night, she sat there thinking of what happened, and how she ended, lying alone, in her condo.

"Oh…" He was a little skeptical, but went with it anyway. He scratched his head, standing there, listening to nothing but awkward silence. "Well, are you feeling better now?"

Emma wasn't sure what to say, "I um…"

"Maybe we could grab some coffee, my treat." Will offered, hoping it wasn't too much of a stretch.

She looked at the time beside her. All day, she sat in her bed, alone. If she went out with him, the topic about her and Carl would definitely come up. She really didn't want to talk about it, at least not yet. Still, she still wanted to talk to him, about something that had been on her mind for the past couple hours. Hesitantly, she answered him, "Sure… that's fine."

Will smiled on the other line. "Cool, well see you in um, an hour?" He didn't need to point out the place, because there was only one good coffee place in town. Emma said goodbye to him, and he hung up the phone. He walked quickly over to his desk, and pulled his jacket off of it, holding by his side tightly, before jetting out of the room.

Emma pulled into the parking lot, and slowly got out of her car. She stared into the window of the coffee shop, and saw Will sitting somewhere inside. He held on to her coat tightly, because it was windy, and walked in. The bell rang as the door opened, and looked up to see her at the door way. He stood up, getting her attention, and gesturing to come over. She made her way to where the table was, and let him pull out the chair for her like he always did. She down comfortable, and watched him scramble to his seat. He slid a coffee cup over towards her.

"I know you don't like your coffee too hot, so I got a little bit earlier…" He looked at her face, and frowned. "You look exhausted."

She shook her head, "Yeah… I didn't get um, much sleep." Cautiously, she picked up the coffee cup that felt a little cooled down and slowly took a sip.

Will rubbed his hands together, "Is that all?" He was still very curious about how her talk went with Carl, if she even had it. He figured it would be better though to let her bring it up. Emma didn't respond for a time, and the silence spoke loud and clear. "You can tell me, Em. That's why I'm here."

Her hand shook, as she put the coffee cup back down on the table. She looked up at him, with a bit of pain. "Can we…. go outside?" W

Will looked at her curiously, and of course was fine with it. "Sure, whatever you want." He slid back in his seat, and got up before Emma, and waited patiently for her to get situated. He followed her out of the shop, and they found a bench around the side of the building, hidden by the high brushes and fence in front of it. He held on to the sleeve of her coat, pulling her down to take a seat next to him. He could feel her trembling.

"Em… what's wrong?" He placed a hand on her shoulder, as she looked up at him, all too unhappy.

"I- I um, talked to Carl… and-" She began to choke up a little in the middle of what she was trying so hard to say. "And he left Will… he left." Emma leaned in, burying her face into his sweater, as he embraced her, rubbing her back soothingly while his heart sank. He had never seen her so upset. He tried to calm her down, but it wasn't working. Maybe she really did love him, and he was just full of false hope.

As much as he wanted Carl out of the picture, he couldn't help but feel so bad about what Emma was going through. "I'm really sorry Emma… I never wanted this to happen to you." Will shook his head in shame. "Especially because of some dance…"

Emma gently lifted her head, wiping the tears that hadn't already soaked into Will's sweater. She sniffled, before telling him what she thought he should know. "That's n- not the only reason…"

His heart skipped a beat, after hearing that was the only reason. "W- what do you mean?"

She looked at him, before closing her eyes tightly and admitting what she needed to for so long. "He realized… that I- I still… love you."

Will shivered a on the inside. He bit his lip as a tear ran down his face, from finally hearing what he had wanted so much from her. He wiped his eyes on his sleeve, before taking a huge sigh. After being set back from what he had just heard, he finally began breathing again. He looked at Emma to find her staring at him, waiting for a response. "I… you don't know how long- I have waited to hear you say that." Hesitantly, he grabbed her hands, holding them tightly. Emma looked up at him, her cheeks flushed. She let out barely visible smile, before pulling away. Will looked back at her, worried now. "What? What's wrong?"

She shook her head, "That's why… I- I can't go to New York with you… I can't, it wouldn't be right..."

His mouth was left open in awe, as he leaned back; completely unsure of what was going on. "I don't understand… what do you mean you can't?" Emma turned away, unable to explain herself. Will held on to her shoulders, and turned her back around, facing him. "You're scared, aren't you?"

She bit her lip, not answering the question.

"Talk to me Emma." He said a little frustrated, wanting to know where they stood. Will knew that she wasn't the best at telling her feelings, and as much as he didn't want to, he would have to pry them out himself. "When um, Carl talked to me… he said that he was there for you when- I, broke your heart."

Her eyes opened wide. She couldn't believe Carl had told him that. It might have been true, but still. "Oh Will…"

"Let me finish" Will said, having more to get off his chest. "Everything you were, you gave to me… and I really messed up. And I know now, how bad you must have felt… when you found out what I had d- done." He trembled a little bit on his words, feeling so wrong. "And you wanted to move on, didn't you? You were afraid of getting hurt again…" As he poured his heart out, he wiped his face, trying to keep from breaking down. Emma had her eyes closed, trying to drown out what he was saying, because she knew it all too well.

"Emma, look at me, please…" He begged for her attention, and hesitantly, she opened her eyes. Will took a deep breath, "I- I never actually slept with April. I swear Emma, I didn't." her eyes opened even wider, as she covered her mouth with her hand. She felt herself shrink, after hearing the truth, after all this time. Even though that was all she needed to hear, Will kept going. "And I know, what I did with Shelby is unforgivable… but it was nothing. I was lost, you we're right. And it only made me realize even more… that all I needed was you, Emma, just you… and if I ever gotten the chance again, to be with you, that I would never, ever let you go again." He let go of her, and pulled back. Will had never thought he would be spilling those feelings to her, nor would he even get the chance. After a few seconds of uneasiness, he rubbed his hands through his hair, and stood up as if he was in a rush.

"I um… I'm gonna go now." He slid his jacket on, and refused to turn back.

Emma called his name quietly and reached out as he walked away, before pulling her hand back, realizing, he wouldn't be coming back around on his own. She wished so bad, she had said something to him, to assure him that everything would be alright, and that she forgave him, but something held her back. That same insecurity that kept her from reaching out to anything she might have wanted. For the first time, more than anything, she was mad, at herself, for making it so hard on both of them. Somehow, she wanted to make everything better, but they needed time, to get there selves together first.

Will had a hard time getting the key into the car door, his whole body shaky. He finally got into his car, and slammed the door shut securely next to him. Throwing the keys in the cup holder, he didn't even bother to turn the car on. All he wanted was to be locked away by his self for some time, for some sense of security. He banged his fist on the steering wheel, and pressed his head against the head rest on his seat, letting all his sadness pour out, finally. There should have been some relief, just because Emma had finally told him how she really felt. But it wasn't that simple, it was just another obstacle they would have to overcome, before moving forward. He wasn't sure how he could possibly make everything alright, feeling his one chance, in the city were dreams were made off, was washed away in it all.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hope you liked it ^^ I totally went in a different direction than what I planned to with this part of the story, but I guess it will end up working out a little better on the bright side. Well um, hoped you liked this chapter, and please review :D Next chapter will be a relief, trust me... though I'm not sure if i am going to have the a big moment in it or not, maybe the chapter after that O.o


	12. Not Too Late

_Yay! happy to see the reviews and all, thanks sooo much. This chapter, I kind of time skipped, cause I'd rather not write a whole chapter on a mopey Emma and Will cause that's depressing :3 So instead of having a lot of conversations, I reflected on their feelings and stuff so it's not too um, vague? Something like that... but here it goes- read and enjoy ^^_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 12: Never Too Late**

The past week had been dreadful. Never before, had she felt so alone. The only thing she heard beside her own thoughts was the continuous ticking of the clock in her office. Emma rested her head in the palm of her hand, leaning on the desk, slowly watching the time pass. Normally at this time, she'd be in the teacher's lounge, eating lunch with Will, but no. Besides occasionally seeing him speed through the hallways, they hadn't talked all week. Not they were necessarily mad at each other, at least from her standpoint, but having to look at each other, like nothing was wrong, would be unbearable. It was kind of weird though, because now that she actually had the chance to be closer to him, she felt farther away than ever. It was alright though, to have some time alone, right? It sounded like a good idea at first, but now she just missed him. Maybe he felt the same way, but after the way he reacted she wasn't so sure.

The next period began, and the hallway had finally cleared. She rubbed her eyes, weary from staring out the glass windows all day. Finally, she got up from her now less comfortable chair, and took a walk outside in the hallway. Emma never really did that, but she needed some new air. Casually, she walked down the hall, with no destination. As she reached a corner, she heard someone else's footsteps besides her own. It was probably just another student. She kept walking, only to meet someone at the intersection who she didn't plan on running into for the first time.

"Will…" She muttered under her breath, waiting to see if he would approach her first. He slowed down his pace, and for a second, unsure whether or not he should engage conversation with her, did so anyway.

He took a deep breath, and forced a barely visible smile on his face. "Emma… hi."

"Hi." Emma said shyly, waiting to see where this meeting would go. He scratched the back of his head, anxiously.

"This is kind of awkward… I probably shouldn't have left you like that the other day." It was a habit for him, to apoligize. He was hurt, but felt really bad about not finishing the conversation, feeling like he didn't give her a real chance to explain herself.

Hesitantly, she shook her head, knowing that she should have been apoligizing, for how much she hurt him. "So um, don't you have a class now?"

Will let out a subtle laugh, and flagged a stack of papers he had in his hand, raising his eyebrows. "Yeah, I had someone cover it… had to copy some papers for glee club next period." He licked his lips, and paused, "Nationals are next weekend. A matter of fact we are leaving Friday at like 5am or something... not really my time of day." He sighed, and brought the papers back down to his side. Bringing that up, killed him inside. Emma folded her arms and looked the ground, not knowing what to say without pushing a button.

"I'm sure the kids… will do great, Will." That was all she could muster up, in the brief time. He nodded, although not as confident as he was a week ago.

"Yeah, thanks." He held his wrist up to look at his watch, quickly wrapping up the conversation. "See you around, I- I have to get this done and stuff."

Emma bit her lip, as he walked swiftly by her, towards the copy room. That was easier than she thought it would be, besides brining up nationals. Oh and the kids, they wanted her to come too. She felt really bad about letting them down, but even if she could explain the circumstances, they probably wouldn't understand either. As of recently, she was even a bit confused as to why not. Why shouldn't she pursue her happiness? Why should she let fear control her life? Hopefully, should would have some of epiphany, and grasp the concept real soon. She realized, she was standing in the middle of a hallway like an idiot, she quickly found the nearest way out of the building, and walked into the court yard. The weather was finally warmer and more welcoming, with a light breeze. She inhaled the fresh air and smiled, for the first time in a while.

* * *

The next week went by a little faster, because when Will and Emma saw each other, they actually managed to say hello to each other, and any other appropriate greeting they felt like letting out after Will had broken the ice. It was Thursday, and everyone was wild like usually because the week was ending, except for the glee kids. They were only filled with anxiety more than anything. Even the excitement of getting to go to the big apple couldn't get their spirits up. Will paced the choir room endlessly, trying to find a way to get to instill in them some confidence, but it was hard when he felt the same way. He was supposed to lead them, but he himself had his own problems he needed to overcome. They would be in New York this time tomorrow, and the reality was starting to set in.

"Alright guys, I know you are all nervous, but we'll be fine."

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Who are you kidding Mr Schue? You are probably stressing more than any of us." And she was kind of right.

Will scratched the back of his head, not having anything to come back with. "Well, um-…" He looked up at the group, who were not even paying attention to him. They were looking intently at the door way, some with smiles on their faces. Intrigued, he turned around too, pleasantly surprised.

"Hi guys." There was Emma, standing there, as if she was afraid to come in. Will's heart was warmed by that, and he smiled gently. Step by step, she came into the choir room, holding her hands together tightly. She went up next to Will, and kept her hand by her waist, and waved to the kids subtly.

He stood next to her awkwardly. "Em- Ms Pillsbury? Didn't expect you to be… stopping by."

She looked up to Will, and shushed him. "Yeah… I won't stay for long." He turned his head a little, and frowned. Emma smiled at the kids, and continued. "I came to um, wish you all good luck."

"We really wish you were coming Ms P." Mercedes said sincerely. Will smiled a tad bit, understanding exactly how they felt.

Emma shook her head, agreeing. "I know… but I figured I'd come in and do the next best thing. You guys are so-so talented." She looked up at Will and then back at the group. "And you don't need a good luck charm… just know me and a lot of other people believe in all of you. Most importantly, believe in yourself… anything is possible, especially in New York."

After she stopped talking, the kids clapped, in appreciation for her heart-felt words. Will placed a hand on her shoulder, and told her quietly, "Thank You." She nodded her head and took a deep breath, before breaking away. Will watched her leave the choir room, and held his hand in a fist. For moment he completely forgot where he was, and turned around to find a bunch of teenagers staring at him, with sorry looks on their faces.

Emma left the choir room, with a destination in mind. Every day after school the past week, she went into the courtyard, to just sit there, and feel at peace. This time, she went in there, a little less happy than before. The faces of the disappointed kids, as well as Will's, wouldn't get out of her mind. This day would be hard, and once today was over with; she would have a whole weekend to get though, wondering how the group was doing in New York. She could always call Will, but that wouldn't be the same as actually being there. She began to stride heavily down the little side walk towards the center on the grassy area. Quickly, she was brought out of her train of thought, when she tried to lift her shoe; it was brought back down, bye something elastic. It was gum. Emma gasped, slowly picking her foot up and looking underneath it. She started to hyperventilate as she frantically made her way to the nearest bench. She shook her head, in a panic. After examining her shoe, not knowing what to do, she looked up, and found herself staring into space.

"_Will…"_

"_Hey Emma, I need your help-… is that gum?"_

She remembered shaking her head nervously, as if it was a deadly situation. She remembered him sitting down next to her, and pulling out a card. He had her lift up her gum infest shoe, and he precisely began to scrape it off for her, like it was no problem. She wished she didn't have a problem with it, but at that moment, she actually had gotten to the chance to just have some time, with just him and her, just to chat. She began to ramble about how to get kids to join glee club, and never realized that she would have actually helped.

"_There you go Cinderella."_

That alone, made her the happiest person alive, even after a gum incident. She then proceeded to tell him that she had a problem, with the messy things. Looking back, she could only say to herself how 'weird' she must have sounded, but over time she came to find out he never was fazed by it. Emma grinned at the little memory that meant so much to her. Hesitantly, she looked back down at her shoe, and slowly began rubbing it back and forth on the concrete, hoping it would make a difference. She couldn't help to think, about how much, she wished her prince charming was there, to help her clean up the mess.

* * *

Emma came home to her lonely condo, feeling more depressed. Earlier than usual, she had got into her pajamas which consisted up long, warm pants, an extra-long night shirt, and slippers. As the sun went away, and it became darker, she knew it was getting late. She walked into her kitchen, which was less shiny than usually, and opened the freezer. After looking around in it, she pulled out a container of strawberry ice cream, her favorite. After placing it on the coffee table, she walked over to a shelf above the TV and pulled out a movie of great significance- 'The Jazz Singer.' She crouched down and turned on the DVD player, placing the disc carefully inside. When the screen popped up, she made her way back to the couch, and positioned herself in the corner of it, and propped her feet on the couch. She grabbed her ice cream, and leaned on her knees, as the movie started. She had no clue why she was watching it, but it probably wasn't a great idea.

After about an hour and half, the ice cream was basically a puddle. Easily, she decided to turn off the movie, tired of dealing with the melancholy of it. She went into the kitchen to put the container in the trash and wash off her spoon. The clock on the stove read '9:30'. She knew it would be impossible to sleep, with everything on her mind. In a hopefully attempt at getting some rest, she made herself and a warm glass of soy milk, and chugged it down effortlessly.

Emma took her slippers off and slipped under her blankets, in her dark room. Restless, she laid her head on her pillow, covered in plastic, and closed her eyes. Surprisingly, she found herself drifting into a sound sleep...

_Her eyes opened at the eruption of noise around her, and she saw a great big curtain close. She looked around confused, and realized she was sitting in a giant theater. It wasn't a small one, like they used for the Rocky Horror Show. For a moment, she felt completely lost. There was a sea of people around her, who immediately rose to their feet in applause. Then, she felt someone or something brush her elbow on the arm rest. She looked up, feeling a sense of relief… _

"_Will…" She looked up at him, and he was clapping. He was clapping, but he wasn't happy. Nervously, she tugged on his arm, trying to grab his attention. He didn't budge though. "Will?" Frantically, she stood up trying to get him to look at her, but it was like she didn't even exist. She kept calling his name, but at the same time, couldn't even hear herself think. The couple minutes seemed endless, and her reaching out wasn't working. Then all of the sudden, room went black. _

_Emma's heart skipped a bit, as she closed her eyes, scared and confused. Quickly though, dim lights had filled the back of the theater, making it visible again. She looked to where Will should have been standing, but he wasn't there. It had only been a few seconds, right? But he was nowhere. "Will!" She called out his name, helplessly, knowing she wouldn't get a response. As the overwhelming amount of people began to draw near here, she went into panic. Then the room around her began to spin, and things went black…_

She shot up from her laying position and placed a hand over her chest. "It was just a dream…" Heavily, she breathed in and out, shocked by her vision. It couldn't have been for nothing, and even someone who isn't a guidance counselor would realize that. _That_ was her epiphany. She looked over at her clock, and blinked her yes a few times so she could see clearly. It read '2:59 AM'. Her mind went back to a time, when Will had told her that the group would be catching a flight at 5AM.

"It's not too late…" She slipped from under her blankets, and sat on the edge on her bed, pondering what she would have to do, to make it to the airport, and catch Will before she lost him for good.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hope you liked the chapter, sorry if went to fast or anything, I wasn't sure if I would be able to entertain with all the stuff in the middle. Haha, and the dream xD i was really stumped about how to conjure up a dream for Emma to have in this chapter, um... i guess it was okay lol. Thanks for reading and don't forget to review :) and im pretty sure what happens next chapter is kind of obvious (this wouldn't be complete without an airport scene xD), but it'll be good lol


	13. New Record

_Hey guys, it was great to see the positive reviews from the last chapter, seriously, I thank you :) I liked writing this chapter, cause I mean for a while I have been waiting to get this moment out, and I think it came out nicely, so that's good. It's a little longer, and I'm gonna try and keep that consistent from her on out, so when I release a chapter, there's something too it. And also I need somewhere to vent out my wemma withdraw for the next 23 days -_- read and enjoy!_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 13: New Record**

'3:05AM' She looked at the clock, trying to move as quickly as possible. Frantically, she went into the bathroom to brush her teeth, and wash her face. Never had she woken up without taking a shower, but this was an exception.

'3:12AM' Emma opened all the drawers in her dresser, quickly looking at all the perfectly folded clothes, color coordinated and all. She pulled out one outfit to change into when she got the chance, and five more for the trip. As neatly as possible, she placed them into a large travel bag. With her phobia, she never really went anywhere, so she never invested in a suitcase. She honestly didn't know what else to bring. _'Of course toiletries!' _That was must whether she was going across country or across the street. In the hallway outside her room, she opened up her well stocked closet. In there were countless unopened toothbrushes, wipes, bars of soaps, wash cloths, and anything else you could think of. She threw more than one item of each in her bag, just in case Will might have forgotten something, because she knew he wasn't always on top of things.

"Ah, one more thing…" Running on her toes, Emma went into her kitchen and swung the cabinet doors open. Knowing exactly where they were, she grabbed a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jelly. Underneath the cabinet was a loaf a break, which she made sure to get to. After putting it in her bag, she zipped it up securely.

'3:47AM' Finally, she took a breath, sitting on the edge of her bed, to slip her shoes on. "New record…" Never, had she gotten ready to go somewhere that fast. She got up and grabbed her phone off the night stand, and slipped the bag over her shoulder. After making sure everything was turned off, she left her room and went over to the closet. Quickly, she slid her jacket on and placed her car keys inside the pocket.

The airport was about an hour away; that was cutting it way too close though. Nervously, Emma turned on her car, and pressed her foot on the gas pedal. She was a little startled by the abrupt movement it made, she had knew that she had to get there as fast as she could. Never, had she gone past the speed limit before, but she had too. As she turned corners to get out of her neighborhood, she jerked side to side. Luckily, at this time of day no one was out on the roads, and the cops of Lima would be asleep at their desks. After about 5 minutes, she was already on the freeway, in a race towards the finish.

* * *

"You alright Mr Schue?" One of his students asked, concerned.

"Yeah… I'm just tired." He said dishonestly and halfheartedly. Will looked back down at his phone, and they would be boarding the plane in 15 minutes. He wish he could be excited, getting a chance to go to New York, to see his kids perform, maybe even catch a broadway show, but he just couldn't. The plane ride would be pretty lonely too. He turned round in his seat, and stared out of the giant window for a couple minutes, observing the busy runway, anything to make the time go by a little faster. It was still pretty dark, and the sun wouldn't be coming up for at least another hour. He turned back around, and saw the kids getting all their luggage together, ready to depart. Will reached into his pocket, and pulled out his phone again, not to look at the time though. Gently, he pressed the picture icon, and began swiping through a slideshow with his thumb. He passed the picture he was looking for, but quickly went back to it, and held it up to his face. It was a picture he swore he would never get rid of. It was a picture of him and Emma that he took on their first date, at his apartment. He stared at it intently, thinking back to when things between them, were much easier. He stared it so much, that he barely heard Finn trying to get his attention.

"Mr Schue! We have to go now!"

Will looked up at him slowly, and shook his head. It was time to get going. Wearily, he got up from his seat and stretched. After looking down at his suitcase and briefcase for a moment, he picked them up hesitantly. As he got his bag situated comfortably on his shoulder, he turned around to look at the busy airport. There were a lot of people walking around, and he hoped that maybe Emma would be one of them, but the chances were slim. He bit his lip, and turned back around towards the gate. Following behind the group, he rolled his suitcase steadily towards where the flight attendant was, taking tickets. As he reached in his back pocket to grab his ticket, he stopped, hearing his name.

"Will!"

Rolling his eyes, he thought, 'Great! Here comes the hallucinations.' Fighting the urge, he dared not turn around, knowing he would find only disappoint.

"Will!" He continued to pull the ticket, and then stopped again, holding it in his hand tightly. His body grew tense, as his name was even more clear and familiar and drawn out than the last time. He heard the sound of heavy breathing drawing near him, and swallowed a huge lump in his throat. Nervously, he turned around, one step at a time, and felt his heart skip a beat.

Emma slowed her steady pace down a bit, when he finally turned around. She caught her breath, and walked up to Will slowly. She looked at him intently, as he looked at her in awe. Loosening the grip on her bag, she let it fall to the ground, not caring the slightest about the germs. She smiled at him, hoping to get a reaction, but he still stood there speechless, not believing what was happening. "Will…"

His hands began to shake, as he let go of the tight grip on his suitcase handle, and took a step forward towards her, taking the first breath he had since he had saw her, standing there, like a dream come true. "Em…" He said he name quietly, feeling the inside of him shiver. She moved closer to him as he showed a gentle smile on his face. He opened his arms, and wrapped them around her tightly. She smiled to, as she returned the hug. They rocked back and forth as he rested his head on top of hers gently. He felt like keeping her close as possible, for as long as he could. He heard, the kids behind him starting to whisper, and he let go hesitantly. He held onto her shoulders though still, and grinned hysterically.

"What are you doing here?"

Emma turned her head slightly, and looked down at the bag on the ground next to her, and Will followed her eyes. He let out a soft laugh, and wiped his eyes, that were on the verge of tears.

"I realized… that this time, I couldn't let you go so easily Will."

Will gazed into her eyes, shook his head in good kind of disbelief. This time, she hugged him, and welcomed her without hesitation. "I'm sorry, f- for putting you through all that."

He held her more tightly, "No, no Emma, it's alright."

She lifted her head and looked up at him, "It wasn't, Will, but now it will be. I just know it." That was one thing she had never felt more confident about in saying. And he, felt for sure, that she was right. They smiled at each other, feeling so overwhelmed. After a couple seconds, Emma stood up on her tippy toes, and looked over his shoulder at the glee kids. They stood there in the background, clapping and 'woo-ing' at their two favorite teachers, finally happy for the first time in this journey as a whole. They broke away from each other's embrace with childish grins.

Will ran his hand through his curly hair, "I think we need to get going."

"I think so too." Emma said, agreeing with him full heartedly. She leaned over to pick up her bag. As she brought it up to her waist, Will grabbed a hold of the strap, gently tugging it away from her. Reluctantly, she let him take it from her, blossoming under his warmth and kindness. Graciously, he slid the bag on his shoulder, slightly losing his balance from all the luggage he had on him.

"Let's go to New York!" Will said ecstatically, and the kids cheered with him ready to begin the next stretch of their journey. Anxiously, Emma stayed close behind him, feeling so near for the first time in a while. Slightly embarrassed, he handed the clerk his crumpled ticket that he never let go of. Then he pulled out an extra ticket he had close to his side.

Emma looked over as he handed it to the lady, "You had an extra ticket with you?" She was surpised, but glad seeing as how she had forgot about getting one.

He looked back at her and raised his eyebrows. "Well… I never thought that this- would happen like it does in the movies, but I brought it just in case." His face got a little red, as she laughed at him in a friendly, joking way, "It's not funny." Emma bit her lip, and shook her head at his statement, respecting his feelings. They tried to get through the tunnel as fast as they could, not wanting to hold anything up anymore. Will struggled getting his all the bags down the aisle, but eventually they joined the rest of the group, and found two empty seats. She helped him push the bags into the compartment above them, and he closed it tightly. They both stood there awkwardly, not looking at the seats.

"Do you want window seat?"

Emma looked at the seat next to the window, "I um…" She shrugged her shoulders, not knowing what to pick. Will took that as a yes, and stood aside as Emma got into her seat comfortably, although she was a little hesitantly. He slid over the arm rest, and plopped into the seat next to her. He watched as Emma struggled with the seatbelt.

"You know you don't have to put that on yet, right?" He chuckled a little, as she let go of the seat buckle.

"Oh… I was just being pre- precautious." She answered, not really sure what she was doing. Will nodded, a little lost. They sat there, like two kids on a bus ride, waiting for something to happen. He began to drum on the back of the seat in front of him, as Emma watched intrigued. Feeling her stare, he looked over at her and rubbed his hands together. She looked down, keeping a smile on her face.

Will went ahead and broke the silence. "I like this…"

She looked up at him curiously, "Like what?"

He shrugged his shoulders, and responded innocently. "You and me… talking, close… like we used to be." She raised her eyebrows, and Will corrected himself. "Well like, we aren't talking at this moment… but in general…"

Emma smiled. "Me too…" She sat up, and looked up at him with an assuring expression on her face. After a couple minutes, the speakers above them binged. The pilot began to talk, and welcomed everyone aboard the plane. He started to explain some basic things that they should know, like the safety pamphlets in the net in front of them attached to the backs of the cheers. Emma lit up inside, knowing all too well about pamphlets. After he said that they were now departing for Newark Airport, which the easiest airport to get to the city from, they heard the speaker go off. Within a couple of seconds, a light above them lit up.

"Well here we go…"

Emma began to shake a little, and put her seatbelt on as Will did. He squirmed in his chair a little, excited. Looking over at Emma, he saw her uneasy expression. "Are you alright Em?"

She started to breathe a little heavier from nervousness. "I uh… I've n- never been on a plane before… we drove here when my family moved from Virginia."

Will blinked his eyes a couple of times, "Oh boy…" Frantically, she looked to him, wide eyed. He laughed a little, "Relax, it'll be just fine. And I'm right here." He leaned in towards, to look at her face, waiting for it to show a little confidence. She nodded, trusting his judgment, but still getting a little tense in her seat. The plane slowly began to move, breaking away from tunnel and made its way to the runway. Emma looked at the window, curiously, but frightened at the same time. She didn't realize how high up thy already were in the plane, and they weren't even off the ground.

"Alright, this part might be a little scary, but it's kind of fun…"

Hearing him say 'scary' didn't help much, it actually cancelled out the fun part. The plane came to a stop for a few minutes, patiently waiting for the runway to become clear. Soon, the engine began to roar, as the propellers under the wings started to spin rapidly. The plane moved forward, and began picking up much more speed than it had before. Emma closed her eyes, and gripped onto Will's hand even tighter. He looked down at her hand on top of his, and couldn't help but smile a little. In a matter of seconds, the plane was going full speed. Emma pressed her head against the seat, "Oh gosh…" She felt the force of the plane, and couldn't help but react, holding on even more. Then she felt a little tilt, and the sound of the wheels rubbing against the runway was no long eminent. They were off they were ground, and in a way that seemed even kind of worse.

"Open your eyes Em." Will said, not wanting her to miss anything.

She took a deep breath, and gradually opened her eyes. Before looking anywhere else, she looked at Will, who was looking down. She realized that she was still holding onto his head, and let go softly. She bit her lip, seeing how red it was, and apologized. "Sorry Will… I just-"

He laughed, cutting her off. "It's fine-," pausing, he smiled gently at her. "You're adorable." She grinned back sheepishly, at his amative words. Emma liked his way, of making her feel better, feel safe. Will lifted his hand slowly, moving his fingers, trying to get the circulation going again. He looked out the window, seeing they were a decent distance above ground. "Why don't you look out your window?"

Emma opened her eyes wide, "Oh I don't think so…" She was still a little scared, even though the hard part was over with.

Comfortingly, Will placed a hand on her shoulder and pointed outside. "It's not that bad, you'll like it."

She looked down, and then slowly let herself turn her head towards the window. Hesitantly, she leaned closer. As she saw little white clouds float by, she jumped back, making Will jump back too. "Woah… well, at least you tried, you know?"

"Mhm…" She licked her lips, feeling a little embarrassed. It was scary, but nice at the same time, being up there, and looking down. Emma looked at Will, "Thanks for um, trying to help me… I guess I just have trouble overcoming my fears…" This would be much easier to conquer than her OCD for sure though, not that she was in any rush.

He nodded, "Your welcome Em." Will loved it when she acknowledged his good gestures; it made him feel like he was doing something right. Everything was going fine, but there was still something he wanted to get off his chest. He looked around cautiously, too see if the kids were doing their own thing, and most of them had their iPods blasting anyway. He turned to Emma, and started talking, a little hesitant with his words.

"So um… since we are here now, and probably won't get much of a chance to talk about it- where do we stand right now?" He scratched the top of his head, not sure if it was right time to bring it up.

Emma licked her lips. She knew the conversation would come up, and she would have to talk about it with him. "Well… first I have to get things sorted out with-," bringing up his name was not something she wanted to do when she was with Will. "Carl… b- but that won't be too hard… well I hope it isn't."

Will shook his head, feeling sympathy. He remembered his divorce with Terri, and had hard it had set in when they actually signed the papers. With Emma though, the whole legal part wouldn't be too hard, he just hoped, she'd be alright emotionally.

"I couldn't agree more." He knew that rushing into things, didn't work out for either of them. And he certainly didn't want a repeat of last time. "We'll take it slow… really slow."

Emma smiled, appreciating his understanding. Still, they were so alike, and now she knew how he felt too. "I'd like that."

He titled his head, with a slight smirk on his face, and felt like he had to say it. "After New York though… don't be surprised if I come in for a surprise sneak attack." His mind went back to when they saw each other for the first time after he stopped her from leaving and how cute she was, with her little dental kit. She raised her eyebrows trying not to smile too much, and took a deep breath before looking nervously at him and nodding, followed by sitting there in awkwardness. Will though, was sitting there thinking, about how perfect everything was. He couldn't wait to get off the plane, she show her New York, and everything it had to offer, both of them.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I hope it was fluffy enough but not too cheesy lol I can totally imagine Emma on a plane, freaking out xD Well, I don't have much to say, just keep reading and review, because I'm gonna make sure this story goes full circle. Next chapter will be good times in the big apple before the competition I am assuming :O sooo thanks for reading!


	14. Reunion

_Hi guys! Great to see the positive reviews, and sorry for talking a little longer... I had major writers block (I'll explain in the a/n), but I really tried working through it so here is the next chapter, read and enjoy :)_

_-cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 14: Reunion**

Will wrapped his arm around Emma's shoulders, and led her over to the large window, which gave a perfect view of the skyline. She stared in awe, along with the rest of kids, huddled in the area.

"It's so-so amazing!" She squawked excitedly. Seeing something like that for the first time, reminded her how much she had been missing, by letting fear keep her from trying new things. At least so far, she had finally made it on a plane. It was a picture perfect day, and they still had so much time left to make the most of it before tomorrow, when they would compete.

"You're amazing." He leaned over her shoulder, joining her. "Making it off that plane in one piece-" Emma took a step to the side, and pushed him away gently, slightly embarrassed at the joke. Will waved his hands frantically, wanting her to relax. "Okay, Okay! I was just kidding."

"I hope so." She gave him one last look, before turning back around.

After a couple minutes of admiring the view, Will gathered the kids around him, running down the plan for the day. "So, we are going to get settled at the hotel, and grab some lunch from there. Then after that, we can go around the city. Lastly, we'll go out for dinner and a show." They asked various questions, making sure they were clear on everything, like the rules and limitations. The kids were no stranger to trouble, and they would be done if they messed up on the trip. He made sure everyone was content with the rules, before leaving them to get their stuff together.

She stood in the background, listening to every word, not used to him being so serious. Will walked over to her as soon as he was done. "You sure laid down the law Mr Schuester."

"Of course Ms Pillsbury." He said with a sheepish grin, leaning over to pick up her bag. "Ready to go?" He held his arm out, allowing her to lead the way.

She stopped him, "Yup… and I can carry it Will." As much as she appreciated how gentlemen like he was too her, she wanted to do something for herself. Quickly, she reached the bad, gripping it tightly.

"Hey! That's my job." Will said jokingly, resulting in Emma giving him a chastising look. "Right…" He let go of the bag and handed it to her slowly.

Letting out a subtle laugh, he led her and the rest of the group to the front of the airport. They had a shuttle bus waiting for them, which would transport them anywhere they needed to go during the entire weekend. One by one, they put their bags underneath the bus, and boarded it excitedly. Of course, Will sat next to Emma, which they enjoyed being able to do without feeling so bad about it. He began to point out different landmarks and important buildings as they drove through the various parts of New York, to reach the hotel. She was so intrigued, feeling happier than ever.

It took almost an hour to get to the hotel. They expected that much though, in such a large city. The bus pulled into a halt, in front of the large, extravagant building.

"It's really… really nice." Emma looked at the building wide eyed, holding her bag close to her side. Will looked up at it, shading his eyes to shield the bright sun from blinding him.

"Yup, all of the show choirs are staying here. It's actually one big hall…" He pointed to the similar building connected to it, "The place we perform is right next door."

The door boy came out of the spinning doors, pulling two carts behind him over to the group. They placed their bags on their, largest to smallest while Will went inside to check them in. Emma stayed outside, watching them contently. Under the circumstances, everyone seemed to be much happier, and it was nice to see for a change. Maybe their two adult figures being in a better mood had something else to do with it.

"Alright guys… I have the room keys. They gave us six. So girls you can split up into two, same with the guys. I'll get one for myself, but we can put all our costumes in there." He passed them out to the groups, and then walked over to Emma.

"Here you go Ms. Pillsbury." She smiled as she slid the key out of his hand, and held onto it tightly before putting it in her pocket. Two of the guys pushed the carts inside, and found the elevators. Anxiously, everyone followed them, waiting to get up to their rooms.

Emma stayed close to Will the whole time, except when they got to their rooms. She looked out the number on her card, and found the room she was staying in. It was across from Will's, and even though she would be in there alone, she didn't feel that way. Easily, she grabbed her bag from the cart and walked into her room. She was surprised that it smelled pretty fresh, but who knew how many people had been in that room before her. It kind of freaked her out a little, but she had to deal with it. Hesitantly, she put her bag on the little table in the corner, and opened the curtains, letting some light in.

"That's better…"

Quickly, she lifted her clothes out of the bag, and placed them neatly in the drawers. She wanted to keep everything else germ free, so she kept them packed away, for extra caution. When everything was settled, Emma quickly left her room, to find Will. When she poked her head out of the door, she saw him leaning against the wall, patiently.

"I was waiting for you to come out." He said with a warm smile.

Emma walked over to him slowly, and stood next to him. "This is going to be a great weekend Will."

Shrugging his shoulders, he sighed. "Yeah… but I wish we could spend time together, just the two of us, you know?" It would be harder than he though, being able to enjoy her company, when he had to watch the glee club too. Not that it was a burden, but still.

"Who says we still can't have fun Will?" She said playfully, trying to make the best of the situation, knowing and respecting that the kids were priority number one too. One by one, they became to emerge from their rooms, into the hallway. "I'm sure they won't mind."

Will smiled at her, aware now how much the kids were pushing from them to be on good terms, the past few weeks. Before, he was too oblivious to realize it. When they all were together, and ready to go he led them back to the lobby and outside, so they could get back on the bus….

* * *

For lunch, they went to a nice pizzeria in the city. They didn't have much time there though, because they were trying to fit a lot into their one free day. The main attraction though, was the Empire State Building. As everyone stood in front larger than life building in front of them, they stared in awe, full of excitement.

"We're going to the top of this thing, right?" Puck asked, not afraid of anything at least.

Will shook his head confidently, "Of course." He had been up there before, but really wanted the kids to see what it was like. It was something you couldn't miss out on.

Emma stared up at the top wide eyed, than back at him, "We- we are?"

"Yup, and you're coming too." He put his arm around her, and pulled her in close. "And I'm not taking _no_ for an answer."

Nervously, she gulped, and shook her head, having no other option. Anxiously, he took them inside the building that was filled with many employees and other sight seers. Although it was fun to take the stairs, they were all too lazy for that. Instead, they all got on the elevators, climbing the building rather quickly. As the elevator came to the stop, the doors slid open. Emma became a little tense, as Will gently pushed her along, onto the roof. Hesitant, she opened her eyes, and saw the beautiful landscape below them. The kids went to the other side, while Will and Emma went to the opposite direction. He walked up behind her, and wrapped his arms around her, giving her a feeling of safeness.

"Thanks for making me come up here, Will." She looked down, feeling on top of the world, feeling the confidence he instilled in her so easily. "It's so nice."

Will shook his head, brushing it gently against her soft hair. "It really is… and you're welcome." He wasn't really admiring the view though; He was basking at the fact that he and her were so close again, finally. The wind blew gently, and they swayed back and forth with it. For what seemed like a long time up there, wasn't at all, but time didn't matter.

"Is this what you meant- by anything is possible?" He remembered back to the day in the choir room, where she gave her words of courage to the group, and couldn't help to think that this also applied. Slowly, she broke from his hold, and looked up to him with a subtle smile.

Honestly, she wasn't sure herself, but she had known that nothing was impossible when it came them. "Well…"

Some hair blew in her face, as they stared at each other. Will pushed it gently back, causing her to get a little red. Their staring match continued, feeling the moment really sink in. He wanted so much just to be able to kiss her, but that wasn't how it should go. The last thing he wanted was for things to turn out like they did before. He wanted to learn from his mistakes, and at least try to embrace what they had at the moment. He wanted it to be right for Emma too, not just him.

He gulped, clearly feeling uneasy. "Mr Schuester!" Luckily, he heard his name get called, breaking the tension. In unison, they both looked over to the group, who we waiting for him to make his way over.

"Heh... duty calls."

Emma shook her head, and turned away, not knowing if it was a good thing or a bad thing. Will sighed, before turning around abruptly, and walking briskly over to the kids. Watching him walk away, she bit her lip, not knowing how much longer the angst could on for.

* * *

After their little trip to the Empire State building, the group had a nice dinner. Then Will took them to see the Lion King. It was a classic, and he was sure it would be something everyone would appreciate. It was late when they had got done, and the bus had already left so they had to walk back to the hotel. They exited the theater, with good vibes.

"It was a great show Will." Emma said ecstatically, really enjoying it, but enjoying being next to Will through the whole thing even more.

He grinned, "I'm glad you liked it." Extending his arm out, he found Emma's hand next to his, and held on to it tightly. They walked behind the group, taking time to enjoy the moment. After walking a few blocks, Will stopped walking, eying a large department store next to them.

"Hey Em… mind taking the kids back? I have to um, use the bathroom, and then I'll catch up."

She shrugged her shoulders, perfectly fine with it. "Sure, don't be too long though…"

He laughed a tiny bit, "I won't." He smiled at her, and began to un-wrap the scarf around his neck. Gently, he wrapped it around hers, making sure she would be warm on the walk back. She blushed a little, and gave him a light hug, before she broke away towards the group. Will watched Emma leave and waited a few seconds until they were near the end of end of the block, before turning around. Briskly, he walked through the department store, trying not to bump into any of the shoppers. It was hard finding his way around, but soon he found the department he was looking for.

"Ah, here it is…" Curious, he walked around it, slowly looking through the glass, trying to find something just right. He made his way over towards the necklaces, and examined each one vigorously. Picking gifts wasn't really his forte, but as long as it seemed special, too him, it would probably be too her too. After a few minutes, something had caught his eye. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was exactly what he wanted to give to her….

He had caught up with the group eventually; they were only a block away from the hotel. After sitting around at the fountains, the tired group went up to their rooms, ready for some sleep. Will had gone up to his rooms in no rush, doubting that he would get any sleep. Still, he wanted to get comfortable and settled in for the night. Quickly, he changed into his t shirt and striped pajama pants. He looked through his bag for a few minutes, throwing clothes and things out of it, searching for his toothbrush. Once he reached the bottom empty handed, he sighed. He wasn't going to go without brushing his teeth, so he decided he might as well ask Emma for one, figuring she would have an extra. Slightly embarrassed, he slumped his way across the hall, and knocked on her door lightly. Emma heard his knock, and slid off of the bed. Wearily, she went to the door and looked through the peep hole. Immediately, she opened the door, and poked her head outside it.

"Emma… hi."

"Hi Will." She stared at him, with her mouth wide opened, admiring how cute he looked in his pajamas and curly hair.

He scratched the back of his head and looked to the ground. "Sorry, but I kind of, forgot my toothbrush… so um, do you have an extra I could use?"

Emma raised her eyebrows and let out a smile. "I do actually… hold on one sec." She knew that her assumption would be right.

"Okay..." He shook his head, and waited at the door patiently, tapping his foot. Emma tiptoed over to the closet, and reached on the top shelf. After feeling around aimlessly, she felt an unopened toothbrush and grabbed it. She walked back over to the door and opened it slowly.

"Don't worry about returning it."

Will took it out of her hand and held it tightly. "Thanks…" He paused to take a look at her and smiled. "Goodnight Em…"

"Goodnight Will." She smiled back, and put on hand on the door, closing it gently. Hesitantly, she turned around before hearing another knock on the door. She recognized the gentleness of it, and knew it was Will again. Anxiously, she opened the door once more. "Yes Will?"

He bit his lip, "I just wanted to say… I love you." He meant that more than anything, and hoped to convey the feeling to her, cause this time, it wasn't just their emotions running wild, fueling a confession of sort. It was special, to both of them.

Emma was a little brought back by it, feeling over the moon. "I- I love you too."

They gazed into each other's eyes once more, before she closed the door. She leaned with her back against the door, and grinned, feeling a little flushed. After standing there, letting his words replay itself in her mind, she walked over to her bad, and turned off the light. She slid under her blanket, and hugged her pillow tightly. For the first time in a while, she went to bed feeling at ease.

* * *

**Author's Note: Alright, this chapter was hard to write, I spent like hours just sitting here on what to type next... I'm not sure if it's because I couldn't think of anything, but more of 'how do I convey it?' Now I have to get into the mojo of writing them on the positive side of things, which I haven't done yet xD And I didn't want to get too redundant with their interactions, which is why I write dinner or broadway show, cause there is still two/three more chapters of them in New York, which is also why nothing happened yet even though that's what you probably are waiting for... so I built up the tension here for the story, and for the characters, who are trying to be more conscious, contrary to how them have been developed on the show :/ Butt yeah, I saved stuff for next chapter, so instead of it just being fully focused in on the performance (yes, they compete next chapter since these chapters are covering each day of the trip) and give some wemma times. I'm gonna stop rambling now lol so I hope the chapter was still good, and please review, thanks for reading :)**


	15. Showtime

_It's been a while since an update :/ sorry about that, but I will get back on board and get these last couple chapters out on schedule, by the end of the week! Well here is the competition with wemma fluff thrown in of course. Thank you for the reviews as always, and also to some of the new readers ^^ so please read and enjoy (btw, you can skip the songs for sure :P well the first one has relevance lyrical wise so that's a good one)_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 15: Showtime**

Will rubbed his eyes, trying to get some clarity. He was drowsy, from not much sleep and it was too late to try and go back to bed, well too early. He looked at the clock, and it was just about 5am. He read in one of those little booklets on the night table that breakfast started at that time. Wearily, he got up from the comfortable bed and quickly changed into some clothes that would be good enough for the morning. He reached into his bad from yesterday, pulling out the necklace and placing it in the pocket inside his coat. Quietly, he opened his door, and walked down the hallway towards the elevator…

Emma had woken up very early as usual, and was finishing up getting ready for the day. Smoothly, she brushed through the curls in her hair, keeping them full. After that, she cleaned off the bathroom sink, and left her room, in perfect condition. After getting off the elevator, she walked towards the breakfast lounge. As she made her way over to the coffee, she noticed something sitting over by the fountain.

"Will?"

He stopped thinking for a moment, and looked up to her with a smile. "Good morning Em."

Slowly, Emma walked over to him. She looked at him, seeing the tiredness in his face. "I thought this wasn't your time of day?" When he didn't say anything, she took a seat next him.

"Yeah… I couldn't really sleep."

"Why not?" She asked curiously, even though she did kind of have and idea in her mind.

He shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "I don't know… maybe I'm just nervous- for the kids. It's the big day today." They had to compete in the afternoon, and hope to even place amongst the dozen other groups that would go after them. "And then we have to wait till tomorrow just to find out the results."

She raised her eyebrows, understanding what he was so down about because she too wanted the kids to do great. Maybe it was time to instill a little confidence in him. "Well, maybe winning or losing doesn't matter Will… just maybe, the kids feeling like they are worth something, that they actually made it here is important. That they are a part of something special."

Will cracked a smile, thinking about how much it reminded him of when Emma talked him out of leaving McKinley, or how everything he said to her or the kids, really did apply.

"You're right." He slid his hands down his face, and dropped them onto his lap. "I don't know how I would have done any of this without you."

Emma turned her head away from him shyly, "I'm not so sure about that." Maybe she was just being modest, but guidance was her job. It took her a long time though, to realize how important it was to people, especially Will.

Nervously, Will slid his hand inside of his coat. "I um, wanted to wait to give you this… but I think now is a good time." He pulled his hand out, grasping something tightly.

Emma bit her lip, and looked at him, wondering what exactly he was talking about. She stared at his hand, which slowly began to lose its tight grip, letting a gold chain hang down. Her eyes opened wide, as he held on to a necklace, by two fingers, letting it dangle, shiny from in the incoming light that had just began to seep through the countless buildings outside and into the lobby.

"I know it's not much, but I wanted something to give to you- to show you how much I care… to show you I'll keep you safe and never hurt you again. That's a promise Emma." His voice began to tremble a little as he undid the chain and held each end of it with both hands. She smiled, not knowing what to say, but to believe every word he was saying. As he went to put the necklace on her, she closed her eyes.

"There…"

Emma opened her eyes, and took a deep breath. Putting on hand next to her on the fountain, and grasped the hearth from the chain with the other and held on tightly. Will looked at her softly, and placed his hand on top of hers.

* * *

Will looked in the mirror, and fixed his tie. In his reflection, he saw Emma approach him.

"You look nice Will."

He turned around, greeted by a smile. "And you look great too- as usual." No matter how much other people though she dressed a little weird, he did love her cardigans. Anxiously, he looked at his watch and raised his eyebrows. "It looks like we better get ready."

Emma shook her head, "You're not nervous anymore, right?"

Thinking about it for a moment, he smiled confidently. "No… not at all." After a few glances, they both went over to the other side of the room, where they kids were huddled, getting their minds set on the performance. Taking a deep breath, Will got in the center of the group.

"So, win or lose, we won't let it get to us, because it's more than that- it's more than getting a trophy. What's important is that all of you go out there and give it all you have, because nothing feels better than knowing you did the best you could, right?"

The kids all stood there in silence, thinking it over.

"Right?" Will added with more exclamation, trying to get it through their heads. Some applause came from the group, followed by cheering. Proudly, he looked over at Emma, who shook her head, satisfied with what he said to the kids.

The lights in the room blinked on and off, ringing. Clapping his hands above everyone else, Will ended the brief celebration. "Save that energy for on stage guys, which is where we need to be in 2 minutes." The kids told each other good luck, before filing out of the green room with Will and Emma behind them. They were so happy to see how motivated the group was.

"You did a great job in there Will." Emma said, giving him a little nudge on the shoulder.

He looked at her, and grinned. "Thanks." Quietly, they went towards the stage doors, as the announcer began to speak.

Will leaned over towards Emma, "Looks like I can finally get you backstage."

She tried to keep from letting out a little laugh, remembering back to when Will came up to her in the kids incorporated costume, trying to impress her with Britney Spears.

"Oh, so-so exciting." She muttered under her breath in a quiet tone.

From backstage, they could hear the audience clap. Within a few seconds, a guy with a microphone came over to the group, letting them know they were on.

"Good luck guys!" As each of the kids got into line in order of coming onto stage, Will gave them a pat on the back while Emma clapped wildly from excitement, her curly hair bouncing as she jumped up and down. The applause started to die down to a silence. And for a second before the music started playing, you could hear a pin drop.

**(Finn)**

_Lying beside you here in the dark  
Feeling your heart beat with mine  
Softly you whisper, you're so sincere  
How could our love be so blind?_

**(Rachel)**

_We sailed on together  
We drifted apart  
And here you are by my side_

**(Both)**_  
So now I come to you with open arms  
Nothing to hide, believe what I say  
So here I am with open arms  
Hoping you'll see what your love means to me, open arms_

**(Rachel)**_  
Living without you, living alone  
This empty house seems so cold  
Wanting to hold you, wanting you near  
How much I wanted you home_

**(Finn)**_  
But now that you've come back  
Turned night into day  
I need you to stay_

**(Both)**_  
So now I come to you with open arms  
Nothing to hide, believe what I say  
So here I am with open arms  
Hoping you'll see what your love means to me, open arms_

As the audience clapped for a brief moment, both Will and Emma stood there with childish grins on their faces. When she looked up at Will, she could see his teary eyes, seeing how much that song must have reflected what he had been feeling. But she was back now, and was going to stay.

**(Artie)**

_One two three uh!_

**(Boys)**

_My baby don't mess around  
Because she loves me so  
And this I know for sho..  
Uh, But does she really wanna  
But can't stand to see me  
Walk out the door.._

**(Girls)**

_Don't try to fight the feelin'  
Because the thought alone is killing me right now..  
Uh, thank god for mom and dad  
For sticking two together  
'Cause we don't know how...  
Uh!_

**(All)**

_Heeeyyy... Yaa..  
Heeyy Yaa..  
Heeeyyy... Yaa..  
Heeyy Yaa..  
_

**(Puck)**_  
You think you've got it  
Oh, you think you've got it  
But got it just don't get it  
Till' there's nothing at  
All_

**(Mercedes)**

_We get together  
Oh, we get together  
But separate's always better when there's feelings  
Involved_

**(Both)**

_If what they say is "Nothing is forever"  
what makes, what makes, what makes  
what makes, what makes love?_

**(All)**_  
Heeeyyy... Yaa.. (Ohh oh)  
Heeyy Yaa.. (Ohh oh)  
Heeeyyy... Yaa.. (Ohh oh)  
Heeyy Yaa.._

By that point, the energy in the room was electrified.

"This is it." Will let out a cheesy smile as he moved closer to Emma's side. She looked up and smile at him as the group began to voice the instrumentals to the next song. "I kind of have a thing for Coldplay."

**(Finn/Rachel)**

_I used to rule the world  
Seas would rise when I gave the word  
Now in the morning I sleep alone  
Sweep the streets I used to own_

**(Puck/Mercedes)**  
_I used to roll the dice  
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes  
Listen as the crowd would sing  
"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"  
_

**(All)**  
_I hear Jerusalem bells a ringing  
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing  
Be my mirror, my sword and shield  
My missionaries in a foreign field_

_For some reason I can't explain_  
_Once you go there was never_  
_Never an honest word_  
_And that was when I ruled the world_

**(Artie/Tina)**  
_It was the wicked and wild wind  
Blew down the doors to let me in  
Shattered windows and the sound of drums  
People couldn't believe what I'd become_

**(Sam/Quinn)**  
_Revolutionaries wait  
For my head on a silver plate  
Just a puppet on a lonely string  
Oh who would ever want to be king?_

**(All)**  
_I hear Jerusalem bells a ringing  
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing  
Be my mirror, my sword and shield  
My missionaries in a foreign field_

_For some reason I can't explain_  
_I know Saint Peter won't call my name_  
_Never an honest word_  
_But that was when I ruled the world_

After the ending of their final song, the audience rose to their feet, in applause. Will had never felt prouder, and Emma could feel his emotions rub off on her as she watched the kids bow and bask in their glory. Quickly, the kids hurried off stage, with smiling faces. Will and Emma gave them high fives as they ran out of back stage.

The group walked back towards the green room, as the rush started to finally leave them a little.

Will rubbed his hands through his hair in disbelief. "Wow guys, that was- that was amazing!" He laughed hysterically as the kids shook their heads in agreement, trying not to get too excited.

Emma walked towards the center, "And as a way to say congratulations, dinner is on Mr Schuester!"

He looked at her nervously, speaking as discrete as possible, "I'm only a Spanish teacher Em…"

Shrugging her shoulders, she looked at the group who stood there in anticipation. Hesitantly, Will looked over too. "Well…" He looked back over to Emma who winked and sighed. "I guess dinner is on me." He scratched the back of his head, forcing a smile. "You all earned it."

The kids clapped, and began to converse about different restaurants they saw during the trip. Slowly, he moved over towards Emma. "You owe me."

She shook her head with authority and smiled. "I know Will… but look at how happy they are now!"

He rolled his eyes, knowing the kids were happy anyway because of the performance. Still, he couldn't turn Emma down. "You sure do have a way of bringing out the best in me." He laughed lightly, with a smile on his face.

"Nope, I'm just here to help you do it." She tugged at his sleeve and gave him a reassuring look. "Then again, you were kind of a mess when I wasn't around."

"Kind of? There aren't even words to describe the wreck that I was, but now…" He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her in to kiss her on the cheek, "Now I don't have to worry about that, right?"

Emma took a deep breath as her face got a little flushed. "Right." Even though it was nothing, she forgot how great it was to be close to him like that, without anything holding them back. It was kind of a new beginning, like after sectionals last year.

Will rubbed his hands together, "Looks like we better get going, if we wanna get a good table somewhere."

* * *

The sound in silverware and chatter all around them didn't seem to matter at the table. Their they sat, in this wonderful restaurant, with linen covered tables those perfect folded napkins, making everything just perfect. Will watched as Emma cleaned off her silverware thoroughly, and began to do the same with his.

"This is kind of fun Em."

She looked at him and smiled, never stopping wiping the fork down, "After a while, it just becomes routine Will… when I was younger though, I loved to clean."

He laughed to himself a little as he watched Rachel stand up from the corner of his eye, beating the side of her glass with a spoon.

"Attention please!"

Quickly, he gave her a chastising look, telling her to keep it down a little, so they wouldn't get a lot of attention drawn to them.

Rolling her eyes, she continued in a slightly softer tone. "Well, I would to propose a toast, by saying proud I am to be here with you guys, in New York because I couldn't see it any other way."

Everyone around the table clapped in the agreement.

"We blew them away when we preformed, and I think I speak for everyone here…" She looked at Will and Emma exchanged glances worriedly, "that it wouldn't have been possible without Mr Schue and Ms Pillsbury- _our _glee parents."

Will gulped a little and shook his head with a half smile. Emma felt herself retreat a little before the flattering part of it kicked in. It was a little weird to be called that, and they weren't even sure if they considered themselves that, but it all made sense.

"Thank You." Emma was the first to respond to the recognition before Will actually stood up and spoke.

"You know guys, I never really realized it till recently, but if it wasn't for glee club, I don't think we would be in this place either." His voice began to choke a little as he looked down at Emma who smiled at the gesture, "And I just wanted to return the thanks because without all you kids, I'd be some accountant, and pretty unhappy, but now- now I feel better than ever, and no matter what happens tomorrow, I couldn't be more proud."

He sat down and took a deep breath as the kids applauded his speech, setting the tone to be warmer than anything else that night. Emma grabbed onto his hand as they looked at each other, knowing they were in the right place.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I'm glad to finally get this posted, and I hope it was worth the wait... now that the whole competition thing is out of the way luckily (I hate having to make setlists and for some reason i think its challenging trying to portray a performance scene lol) I'm going to get back in the swing of things and I shouldn't have any trouble what will prob be the last two or three chapters of this story cause I have it mapped out :( sad right? but next chapter will be a little depressing while on the other hand, you will have reason to rejoice without a doubt. Thanks for reading, check out the next chapter which will be out by tuesday I promise and review!


	16. Pearly White

_Hellooo... thanks for the reviews as always. I found myself really getting into this chapter so I got all I could down, so it's a little longer than usuall but filled with good stuff so hope you enjoy :)_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 16: Pearly White**

"I can't believe this is it." He let out a disappointing sigh as he took a sip of his coffee. Raising his glare, he looked up at Emma who still had a smile on her face. "You're not disappointed?"

She played with her fingers, trying to figure out how to put this. "Well, we both knew we weren't going to be in this City forever Will. But, at least it was worth -while… we won't leave here missing anything, you know?"

Will chuckled as he put his coffee mug down. "You're right-" He bowed his head in defeat, "…as always."

She flashed him a smile, which was something that always made him feel jittery inside.

"In hindsight however, I should have good judgment, as a guidance counselor, you know giving guidance and stuff…"

"And a wonderful one at it too." He winked, as Emma shifted her gaze downward, flattered by the compliment. She had doubted her efficiency when it came to trying to help the kids or even Will for that matter but he had a way of re assuring her that she was just fine.

"You know, I was kind of surprised at how well you handled New York… with the germs and all."

Emma bit her lip, "While yes, it was a bit-"

Raising an eyebrow, Will looked at her strangely. Quickly, she retreated backwards, changing her statement, "Very messy… I guess I kind of wasn't afraid. Honestly though Will, I'm not really scared when you're, um, around." It was true; he had a way of keeping her calm, just by his presence. Her insecurities seemed go out the window.

He wiped his brow and rested his head on his hand with a bright expression. "That's… good to know because that's how I want it to be for now on. And I know-" He paused, making eye contact with Emma. "It'll get easier from here on out. You trust me?"

She licked her lips and nodded.

"Emma?" He said her name as if he was scolding her because that response wasn't good enough for him.

"Yes Will." She let out a giggle as Will leaned back satisfied.

He cleared his throat. "This is a good start, well officially once we get past judging. Then we can focus on us."

"I- I like that." Emma said confidently. "Speaking of judging, you know more about show choir competitions then I could ever know, do you think they could get first?"

* * *

He tilted his head back in forth, contemplating the thought. "I think they have a real shot, but I think what we said to them really sunk in so either way, we'll be fine." They both exchanged glances, ready for whatever was going to happen that day.

Will bounced up and down, feeling an adrenaline of no other as they last few groups were given places. They announcer was on the 5th place ranking, and New Directions hadn't been called yet. Even though anxiety was the most noticeable emotion, the joy of knowing you were so close to being at the top was still evident. Emma watched Will intently. He was like a little kid, waiting to get an award at an assembly. She grinned at the thought of a young Will Schuester, with picture perfect curly hair and a tiny sweater vest. More so, she had admired who he had become, even with all the bumps in the road this past year. He cared so much about the kids, and so much about her. He made her feel better about herself more than anything, and she wanted to do the same.

"Hey!"

She jumped back a little as Will popped up out of know where in the middle of her thinking.

He put her hands on her shoulders laughing, "Sorry about that…"

Emma shook her head and smiled.

"What were you thinking about?"

"Oh nothing…" She wasn't going to tell him about the images she had in her mind of him as a kid, because that was kind of creepy.

Will turned his head and listened to the announcer, feeling his heart skip a beat. "He's about to announce 4th place…"

"Oh joy…" Emma took a deep breath, as Will was totally engrossed with the results. She too was, but knew how much more it meant to Will, seeing as how he had been in the same position many times before. Nervously, Will's muscles began to tense, as the announcer added a dramatic pause.

"_And in 4__th__ place… from Vermont, the Rockies!"_

Will's heart skipped a beat as he let out a sigh of relief. He turned back around to Emma breathing heavily as the kids made their way over. Emma clapped wildly along with the crowd, knowing what that meant. As Will approached her, she could see his blue face under the illuminated back stage.

"Breathe Will." She said jokingly as the group started to finally realize they placed at Nationals. It was dream come true for all of them, and now the just had to get done the home stretch. In a way, she was being a hypocrite though because she was so excited too. She was glad to be a part of that, but even more happy that the kids had gotten their moment to shine.

"_Would the remaining show choirs and their directors please make their way on stage…"_

As the kids began to scurry on stage, Will walked up to Emma quickly and smiled. "Let's go Em-"

"No, I um, think I'll stay back here." She said with a half grin as Will's smile slowly began to fade away.

"Why? You should be out there with us?"

She looked down at the ground, clicking her heals together. "This is _your _time to go out there, under the spotlight. I'm just here to cheer you on and hope for the best Will." When he didn't say anything right away, she looked up at him and lightly tugged on his tie. "And anyway, I'd be a little nervous to be out there, in front of everyone."

Hesitantly, Will regained his happy expression and shook his head. "Thanks Em… I love you, you know that right?" He grabbed on to her, and gently kissed her forehead. Emma closed her eyes under his warmth, biting her lip as he felt his grip loosen. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and reached out for him as he began to walk away.

Abruptly, Will turned around confused, "What-?" As he tried to finish his sentence, he felt Emma's lips crash into his. He eyes opened wide, completely shocked by what was happening. After a few seconds though, he began to melt and closed his eyes. Leaning in ferociously, he cupped her warm cheek. As time seemed to go on, Emma slowly broke away and opened her eyes nervously, her hand covering her mouth. She saw Will, still standing there with his eyes closed, barely standing upright. She took a deep breath as Will finally met her gaze, with surprised look on his face. He gulped and as he showed a satisfied smile. They had just kissed, and she was the one to initiate it.

"W-What was that for?"

"I wanted too…" She replied shyly before smiling partially. "And remember, I owed you from yesterday." After exchanging some glances, she stood up on her toes and looked over his shoulder. "Now get out there Will, their all waiting."

Will looked over his shoulder at the anxious group of kids, trying desperately to get their attention. He let out a sigh and grinned at Emma.

"I'll be right back." Turning sharply, he ran towards the stage and under the limelight with the kids as the noise from the audience started to die down.

Slowly, Emma made her way towards the curtain one step at a time, to get a little closer. She stared at Will, who exchanged glances with her once in a while, but keeping focus for the most part. Now that the moment was over, she kind of took the time to let it sink in. Never was it her intention to be the pearly white harbor; it just happened. In a way, she felt relieved that that unresolved tension had some closure, and she liked that closure a lot.

The kids had their eyes closed, waiting desperately to be put out of their anticipation. Emma grabbed onto her skirt, starting to feel the same way.

"_And now in third place…" _Without even trying to move at a normal speed, the announcer slid the name out of an envelope eyeing it with a blank expression. _"Vocal Adrenaline!"_

Simultaneously, everyone's jaw dropped. Their main competitor got third place? That meant they had beaten them. As the group, obviously displeased with the result went to accept their trophy, the group began making murmurs, with ecstatic grins. Will looked over at Emma and did a barely noticeable fist pump at his side, showing he already had a sense of victory. As Vocal Adrenaline walked off stage with their heads hanging, New Directions and the remaining show choir had merged towards the center, still keeping their distance however. Emma bit her lip as the presenter handed over the next envelope. The kids held each other's hand as Will moved in between them, wanting to be a part of the moment.

"_And now, our first place Show Choir National Chapmions…"_

Will swore for a moment he could hear the sound of his heart beat. He was sure though that he could feel the pound against his chest as timed to slow down into another dimension. Nervously he, he opened his eye just a tiny bit, to see what was happening. As he saw the envelope be slit open, he shut his eye closed once more, with his eyebrows furrowing inward.

"_From Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Groove Sharks!"_

First, feel what it's like to have your heart sink.

Next, open your eyes and look at everyone around you, who share the same look of despair In their eyes.

Then, hear the crowd and look at your competitor, wishing it was with all the glory.

Lastly, try your hardest to come to termsthat what happened is okay, and you tried your best.

Will licked his lips, and shook his head as the group seemed to show barely any joy as a mix of emotions seemed to take over. For the first time, he was unsure what to say to the kids, to make them know that it wasn't the end of the world. His eyes drifted towards Emma as she stood there with an uneasy expression, seeing the disappointment in the kid's faces. She looked to Will who had begun to frown. She couldn't see him or any of them like that. They didn't deserve to feel that way. After some uncertainty, she smiled at him with a confident glare. He looked at her and took a deep breath, copping with the situation. Shaking his head, a slight grin grew on his face. As the presenter made his way towards the group with a large trophy, Will tried to raise their spirits. Taking the trophy in one hand and shaking they guy's hand with another he walked in front of the group, waving his hand in the air.

"Come on guys, second place? Second place!" Hesitantly the kids looked up to him and nodded their heads. Rachel let out a tiny laugh as Will handed her the trophy. After giving it one steady glare, she shot it in the air. Without thinking twice, they all reached to touch the trophy, feeling the weight of one another fall down on them, but never losing their stature as they all drifted towards the center. Will laughed hysterically, feeling an overwhelming sense of happiness, like everything was okay. The kids were happy, he was happy. It couldn't get better. He closed his eyes for a moment letting reality hit him, before realizing it wasn't the only thing coming his way. One by one, he felt the kids nearly tackle him as they embraced him with open arms, as a way to say thanks to their favorite teacher.

Not taking into consideration how long they had been out there, they moved in the huddle, tightly packed off the stage slowly but surely. As the curtain brushed against some of the kids, they began to disband, breaking off into their own sections, letting everything they felt pour out. As the last kid moved away from Will, he looked up to find Emma, standing their patiently, with a smile that made him melt. Eagerly, he ran toward her. Not ready for any kind of attack, Emma let out a shriek as Will grabbed a hold of her, picking her up off her feet. Holding tightly, he spun her around a few times before putting her back down on her feet uneasily.

"Will!" She let out a laugh, as she grabbed unto her arms trying to regain her balance.

He raised an eyebrow with a smirk growing on his face. "My turn…"

As Emma pulled back, he leaned in and kissed her more passionately than before. She placed a hand on his chest as they felt each other's smile before separating. Will looked down at her and took a deep breath. She stared at him with wide eyes.

"Sorry Em, I just needed to get my sneak attack in." Jokingly, he luaghed a tiny, lightning up what had just happened.

And so the pearly white strikes again.

"Well were even now for a while, right?"

"Of course- as long as you want, I won't go anywhere." Excitedly he grabbed her hand, and pulled her over to the side, while the kids gathered around.

"I am so proud of you all. Not just because you threw down, but because even in defeat, you still look like winners. We may have not have gotten first place, but hey, we beat Vocal Adrenaline!" The kids clapped, screaming out all kinds of victory adlibs, seeing as how that was one of the most satisfying parts.

"_And you got Ms P." _Will raised his eyebrows when he heard that come out from all the commotion. He bit his lip and nodded.

"I did." Happily, he looked down at Emma, who glared at him with wide eyes and shook her head, securing the notion. "Well, I guess we better get back to our rooms and start packing if we wanna get back in time…" A few moments of silence seemed to take over, with that fact that their perfect weekend was coming to an end, and they would back roaming the dusty halls of McKinley. They kept their heads up though because at least that had

* * *

Will rested his head on the top of the seat, his eyes shut tightly. His stomach growled, causing Emma to look at him strangely. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her, and sighed.

"I'm just really hungry or something…" There was a food court in the airport, like any, but he was too lazy to get up. By this time anyway, he wouldn't have enough time to get food.

"Ah.." Her face light up as she unzipped her bag and began to rummage through it. Will looked over her shoulder, curiously to see what she was trying to find. As she pulled out a plastic container, his stomach already began to feel full. It was obvious what she was about to crack open and he couldn't wait to take a bite from it.

"When I um, packed my clothes up, I figured that maybe I should make a PB&J, just incase." Carefully, she peeled off the container, and began to un-wrap the foil meticulously. "Here we go." Grabbing each corner of the sandwich, she tore apart with ease and handed one of the halves to Will.

He licked his lip and took a large bite, savoring it whole. As he swallowed the last of it he cleared his throat and shook his head in approval. "It gets better and better every time."

Emma would have said something, but her mouth was full too. She smiled, and they continued to take small bites, making it last.

In about 15 minutes, they had called boarding for their flight. Taking on last look at the skyline, Will and Emma walked over to the gate with their kids filing in front of them, wanting to get first dibs on the seat of their choice. After handing the flight attendant their tickets, they walked onto the plane slowly, sliding down the aisles with their bags. Will their belongings up top in the cabinet as Emma took the window seat, feeling much braver this time around. She looked out the window, and saw the night sky take over. All the different colored lights on the runway fascinated her.

"Cool, huh?" Will asked observing her as he sat down, his leg brushing hers just barely.

"It is… at night though, there mustn't be much a view, right?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Kind of… eh, not really. At first though, you'll see New York lit up, but then it's just kind of dark."

"Oh…" Emma stared out the window some more, waiting for something to happen. It was late, and it was really quiet. She wasn't surprised though, they must have been tired, and she was really tired too. Finally, the now familiar sound the captain coming in on the over head had gone off. After he was finished, that light went off too. She put her seatbelt on, and made sure Will did the same. The next she looked over at him, she noticed his head hanging slightly. His eyes were beginning to shut close.

"Will?" She shook his shoulder, causing him to jerk up. He blinked a a couple times before looking over and smiling slightly. "We aren't even off the ground yet."

"Sorry." He stopped, to yawn, barely awake. "I'll wait until you go to sleep… you are going to sleep, right?"

She shook her head, "I'm sure I will, and thanks."

"No problem-" The engine on the plane started up, causing Will to stop speaking. "Here we go…" Within a couple minutes, the plane made its way towards the runway at a slow speed. After staying still for some time, the propellers in the wings began to rotate. Will looked at Emma, unsure of how she was feeling, because her face was pretty blank. "Need me to hold your hand?"

Emma thought about it for a moment, "That'd be nice." It would be very nice. This time, she didn't need him holding on, but she wanted him to just because. As the plane went into motion, he put his hand on top of hers, as they stayed as relaxed as possible as the plane raced off the runway and began its ascend.

As they flew in the air, Will tried to keep his mind on different things, so he could stay awake. It hadn't really worked, as he struggled to keep his eyes open. He hadn't let go of Emma's hand, and didn't plan to until she said so. He noticed though, that for a while, her hand been pretty motionless. He looked over at her, her head limp on her shoulder. He heard her steady breathing, and knew she slowly drifting into a sleep, as he was. Letting out a grin, he turned off the light above them. And just like that, he his eyes shut closed, and that was all he remembered from that plane ride.

* * *

"Will, wake up." He heard his name faintly, and opened his eyes. It took him a bit to adjust to the brightness of the plane, but he was able to see clearly.

"Hey Emma…" Will looked at her briefly and rubbed his hands on his face, trying wake himself up some more. _'Ew…' _He felt his hands come in contact with some slobber and made a face. Giggling, Emma handed him a napkin so he could clean himself up a bit. Taking some time to relax, he waited before getting up and waking up all the kids he were soundly asleep on each other's shoulders. It wasn't till about 20 minutes later that they were all off the plane and on their way towards the other end of the airport, to catch their bus. When they reached the exit, with seats lined along the walls, they all took a seat, waiting patiently. Will looked a bit disappointed, as he sat down next to Emma.

"Are you gonna be fine driving home, I wish you could come on the bus…"

She bit her lip. "I'll be fine."

He looked at her skeptically, "You aren't too tired right?"

"No Will, I had plenty of sleep on the plane." She put her hand on his shoulder and smiled. "I'll be fine." Will forced himself to be okay with it in his mind, trusting that should really would be fine.

Reluctantly, he shook his head and let out a sigh. "Alright, well since Figgins is alright with us playing hooky tomorrow, will I see you Tuesday?"

"Of course, I have to be there…" She stood up, grabbing her bag and putting it on her shoulder. "But, seeing you will be the most important part of my day I think."

"The feeling's mutual." He laughed a tiny bit, standing up so he could meet her eye to eye. They looked at each other, not wanting to part. "It's gonna be a long day tomorrow."

Emma shook her head a let out a tiny smile. Will wrapped his arms around her gently, giving her a light hug. She hugged him back, as he rested his chin softly on her curly hair. After one more longing look, they split apart, as Emma left by herself, only looking back when as she left through the rotating exit. Slowly, she made her way to care. She popped the trunk and placed her bag inside, before taking a seat. As she put her key in the ignition, she heard her phone rang. In her mind, she though it could have been Will, and scrambled to pull it out of her purse. When she looked at the caller ID, she wasn't sure how to react.

"Carl…"

* * *

**Author's Note: **Ahhh! Cliffhanger! Eh kind of, not really... trust me, the Carl thing is nothing tragic... don't be worried at all ^^ The next chapter, I'm afraid that is probably the last one :'( I don't know if I could like continue on... it's something to think about the next couple days as I get writing, but it's all good cause their will be closure in everything, so it'll be a good ending ^^ Thank you sooooo much for reading, I really hoped you liked the chapter, and please review, see ya at the end of the week :D


	17. Closure

_Hey guys! So here is the final chapter :) Thank you so much for everyone who's been reading and reviewing and showing all the support. It was fun to write this story and I hope you enjoy the ending. Thanks_

_-Cheena_

* * *

**Chapter 17: Closure**

Yesterday was a long day, of sitting on the couch, staring at the TV blankly and alone. She hadn't seen or talk to Will since they left the airport. It wasn't until the next morning that she saw all the missed calls on her phone, which she hadn't touched at all. Sooner or later, she would see him, because she wanted to and she needed to. Nervously, she fixed the little bow tie she had on, as she approached Will's office. Quietly, she knocked on the door and peered through the glass.

"Will?"

His face lit up as he saw his favorite person push the door open gently. Anxiously, he popped up from his seat and ran over towards her.

"You don't have to knock anymore you know." Will said, adding a laugh at the end, and give her a hug. She shook her head, rubbing it against his soft sweater vest. He grabbed her hand and pulled her over towards the desk. Carefully, he leaned on it, making sure not to knock anything over. He looked up at Emma, who was standing there a little awkwardly. "Em, is everything... alright?"

Her eyes got real wide, "Um, everything thing is fine."

He shook his head uncertainly, "Are you sure? I tried calling you yesterday, but you didn't pick up."

"I know, I didn't even hear my phone go off, I was pretty tired." She smiled, reassuring him. "I can't stay for long though, Will. I have to catch up on some work."

He shrugged his shoulders, "That's okay, we can talk at Glee Club after school."

Emma bit her lip, and looked down towards the ground. After school today wouldn't really work.

"I'm sorry Will, but I can't make it today."

His face grew into a look of disappointment and confusion. "Well, why not?"

She sighed, before answering hesitantly. "Well... C-Carl called on my way home the other night and-"

"What happened?" Will stood up defensively, his eyebrows raised. Emma didn't say anything at first, leaving him worried. Obviously, something was getting to her, if it caused her to go back into her nervous shell.

She looked up at him, "He called about an annulment... he wants to get it done today."

"Oh..." Will licked his lips, "Are you ready to do that?" He tried to muster up anything he could say, to show that he understood. "I knew that I was done with Terri, when we got our divorce... but there is still that something, about closing that chapter in your life, isn't there?"

Emma shook her head, not sure how she felt. At least she had someone to confide in, and that person was he best friend, who she could tell anything. "Mhm... I um, just kind of feel wrong, because this isn't the first time, I've r-ruined someone's life because I wasn't honest with myself in the first place." That was something she wished she had done, which was being able to learn from her mistakes. With Ken, she was willing to give up what she really wanted for something she really didn't want. And with Carl, she cared about him, and she had told herself and everyone else she had put Will behind her, but it was never true.

Slowly, Will leaned down, looking at her eye to eye. He saw how much she was hurting and wanted to make it better.

"Shh... Emma. Don't beat yourself up over this. You couldn't help it... and I didn't make it much easier for you either."

She sighed, blowing the hair out of her face. Opening her eyes, she smiled, knowing that he was right, and trying so hard to be okay with what was happening. Will smiled back, and hugged her once more, this time, more compassionately, rubbing her back soothingly.

"It'll be alright, this is a good thing, trust me."

Emma closed her eyes under his warm embrace, "Thank you, Will."

* * *

"Sign here... and sign here."

Carefully, she watched the trailing finger hover over different sections of the document. Hesitantly,she wrote her name on each line, her hands shaking. Taking a deep breath, she slid the paper over to Carl, who didn't make any eye contact. Swiftly, he did his part, and clicked the top of the pen, placing it on the paper. The man overseeing it, swiftly grabbed the papers and left out the door, leaving them both at the table, in silence.

"So, this is how it's going to end?"

Emma bit her lip, "I'm sorry, Carl." She wasn't sure what else to say, and she really wasn't in the moodto pour her heart out.

Carl cleared his throat. "Don't be... I shouldn't have left like that, without talking about it either. I should have known that coming into this, it wouldn't have been easy. But we did make a deal, if you started leaning towards Schuester's way, I'd back off, and well- here we are."

They made a deal? She gulped at the sound of that, not sure how to react. Now it didn't matter though. She looked up at Carl for the first time since they arrived, forcing a smile on her face, because he at least attempted to have them end on good terms, even with the circumstances. Quickly, he stood up and grabbed the jacket off of the back of his chair. He began to talk as he slid it on.

"Now I completely understand if you get a new dentist, because it would be pretty awkward." He laughed halfheartedly as he made his way towards the door. "Good luck, Emma."

She looked over her shoulder, only seeing him out the corner of her eye. "You too, Carl." Closing her eyes, she heard the door shut close. That was the end of that. It wasn't necessarily a sad thing, so she didn't cry. Instead, she sat there, thinking of what was next. Hopefully just good times, because it was something she needed so badly, for both her and Will. It was time to put the past behind them finally, and move on to better things.

She wasn't sure how long she had been sitting there. Eventually she got up and changed into her pajamas so she could be comfortable for the rest of the evening. Emma sat on her couch, resting her head on the arm rest. Out of know where, a knock on the door came. Hesitantly, she got up and crept her way towards the door.

"Emma?"

She knew that voice, which echoed in the hallway outside her condo. Quickly, she tuned the door knob, and opened the door to a familiar face.

"What are you doing here?" It was a pleasant surprise though of course.

"Well, I figured if I called first, you'd tell me not to worry about it, but I wanted to see how you were." He smiled at her, "May I come in?"

Emma looked at him wide eyed. "Um… sure, Will. Thank you, for checking on me." She took a step to the side, giving him space to slide in through the doorway.

"You know, this is the first time I've been to your house." He chuckled softly as he walked in, looking around curiously. He had imagined it to be perfect, and it was just that. There were a lot of light colors, on the walls and furniture. Everything was standing up straight, even the books. The pillows had plastic over them, and the glass couldn't have been anymore clearer. He inhaled the fresh scent that surrounded him. "Your house, it's very nice, Em."

Smiling, she thanked him. "Thank You." On the inside, she was really happy he had said that. Carl on the other hand, wanted her to get a little messy around the house, but that just wasn't her. It really bothered her, if he put something back, not how she had it. Closely, she followed him into her living room.

"So, are you doing okay?" Will asked sincerely, not being able to tell by her expression. Maybe that was a good thing though.

Emma shook her head. "I'm fine."

He looked around and shook his head. He noticed that the curtains were closed, and the TV was off. "It's kind of lonely, isn't it?"

She looked away, nodding her head. "W- well, I've gotten used to it, from these past couple of weeks. It's just really sinking in now, especially since we got back the other night." In New York, they were just across the hall from each other, and that was close enough. Now, she just came home to an empty place, trying to make the time go faster so she could get to school the next morning, and actually do something, and see people, no matter how weird their problems are.

Will clasped his hands together. "I know how you feel, well I mean, over time I was okay with the change." He looked at her, seeing that what he was saying didn't really make much of a difference. As quickly as he could, he tried to conjure up a compromise. "Hey, how about you come to my place, and I'll cook dinner. Then maybe, we could watch a movie or something, and make the rest of the day go by faster?"

Dinner… she thought back to their last 'date' and bit her lip.

"Please…" He stretched out the word, in a begging tone. Grabbing her hands, he waited for her to say yes.

Emma couldn't help but smile, "Sure, why not."

"Awesome." His face lit up as he grabbed his car keys from his pocket. "Do you need to grab anything?" He looked around as if he was trying to find something.

She looked down at her attire, "Well, I normally don't go out the house like this. I'm gonna change into some other clothes real quick."

Will laughed a little. "I um, will wait here I guess." As Emma went towards what he assumed was her bedroom, he went over to the couch. The sound of the plastic on the pillows crinkled as he tried to keep them from getting misshaped or anything. For what seemed like maybe 10 minutes, Emma walked backed, looking rejuvenated.

"I'm ready." Emma said as she walked over towards a shelf, grabbing her house key from the hook underneath it.

"Geat." Will snapped his fingers and pointed towards the doorway, causing Emma giggle from his child like excitement. Following behind him, she securely locked her door and followed him downstairs. It was really nice outside, as the sun was starting to set and a cool breeze kicked in. Will unlocked each car door. Slowly, he pulled Emma's door open, causing it to make a squeaking noise which they couldn't help but wince at. Will laughed nervously as she hesitantly took a seat. Quickly, he jogged to the other side and sat down at the driver's seat. He put his keys in the ignition and turned the car on. Before doing anything else, he turned the radio on, as a slow jam come on.

"Cool…"

Emma turned to him and smiled as he started swaying side to side, backing his car out of the parking spot. As they began to drove away, she didn't even hear the dragging muffler behind them.

"Here we are…" He pushed his door open, and let Emma go in first. She looked inside, scanning the area. Things had a changed a bit, since she had last been there. Almost immediately though, she noticed some things out of place.

"Sorry I didn't clean up everything. I didn't want you to think I planned to have you come over or anything like that…" Will's words began to fade as Emma looked at him suspiciously. Shyly, he moved past her and began to quickly picking various things off the floor and throwing them into a closet by his bed room. "You can sit down if you want!" He called out over his shoulder, as tried to put everything away a little organized. Emma walked over to the couch, and sat down, not getting too comfortable. In a couple a minutes, he came back into the living room and turned the TV on. The news was on, which was something he watched while he was bored. He knew Emma didn't mind hearing about local news though.

"Anything you want in particular?"

Emma looked up at him, and though for a moment. "I don't think so. You're the chef Will."

He laughed a little, "I'll try to get something together real quick. Want anything in the mean time?"

"No thank you." She answered him with a smile, so he knew he wouldn't have to keep asking her like he always did. Anxiously she sat there, as the sound of pots and pans ringed in her ear. She could tell he wasn't the most organized 'chef'. Finally, all the clatter subsided into a tune he was humming, as the sound boiling water and sizzling took over. Curiously, she got up and walked over to him quietly. Peering over his shoulder, she watched the steam travel up to the ceiling.

"Emma?" Will looked over his shoulder, holding a spatula in his hand.

She took a step back, startled a bit. "Oh, I- I was just watching you I guess… that's kind of creepy."

A smile cracked on his face, "No, not at all." He turned back around, and began to chop up some ground meat. "Wanna help?"

"Sure…" She did like to cook, and it would be fun. Easily reaching into the cabinet above the stove, he pulled out a box of spaghetti and handed it to her. "Just poor the noodles in the pot and stir while I do this stuff, okay?"

She took the box from him and slid the top open. "I think I got it." Emma looked at him confidently as she poured the noodles into the pot. They fell out quickly, causing water to splash up. Will jumped to the side as little water droplets made their way towards him.

"Easy there, Em. I'm sure you're a boss at this stuff, but-"

Strangely, she looked at him. Will bit his lip, slightly embarrassed. "Sorry, I hear the kids say that… I know it was cheesy."

"I know…" They exchanged glances, and broke out into laughter. Before they knew it, the food was ready and it smelled great. Excitedly, Emma set the table as Will prepared their plates and brought them over swiftly like some kind of waiter. Carefully, he placed one in front of Emma, who was seated patiently. "It pretty hot…"

As he sat down, he blew some of the steam off of his plate, ready to eat as soon as he could.

"It looks great Will."

He smiled at her, before slowly eating some of the meal. His mouth was a tad full when he opened it. "Your noodles are great too."

She blushed a little at his compliment which wasn't really much of a compliment to be proud of, but it was still a sweet one. Placing her fork into the pasta, she wrapped it around delicately and slid it off the fork, tasting it. It wasn't that bad. Honestly, it was really good. Last time she had dinner with him, she was too busy swooning over even being in his presence, but now she felt equal in some sort of weird way, because now they both were very sure of their feelings of each other, which couldn't be more similar.

They engaged in random conversation, as if they were just hanging out, like best friends, even though it was much more. Just being able to comfortable around each other again was fine though, because that was what they both wanted for a long time. Emma rubbed her weary eyes, as Will yawned loudly, covering his mouth. They looked at each other with tired expressions.

"I guess it was all that food…" He looked down at his empty plate.

Emma sighed. "I'm actually pretty tired too."

They hadn't kept track of time, because it didn't matter. Will looked over to his stove, and saw the time. "It's a little passed 9…" He frowned a little, "Guess I should take you home now."

For a few seconds, they exchanged glances for what seemed like a long time, each with their own thoughts in their mind. Although she wouldn't want to have to say anything, she didn't want to leave. It was nice, feeling at home again, with someone to just talk too, and what better person than Will. She licked her lips, trying to think of something to do.

"I should um, help you clean up at least." She looked at him nervously as he as his expression tightened.

"Well, if you want… you don't have too."

Emma stood up, and picked up her plate. "No, I want to Will."

Not going to argue it, Will smiled as he got up and did the same as her. They both walked over to the sink, sharing the space just barely, to clean off their dishes and splash suds around. After some times passed, they both stared at each in defeat. Emma began to pat at her blouse, trying to absorb some of the moisture from the sink water.

"Sorry about getting the water on you… it's kind of dirty."

She handed him the towel, "Here. I think you needed it more than I do Will. And I'll just have to put it in the wash, it's alright."

He took it graciously and examined his nearly soaked vest. As he was pre occupied with that, Emma looked at the time and saw it was almost ten o'clock.

"You know, it's pretty late."

Will looked up at her, "I know, I shouldn't have kept you here this late. Ready to go?"

She looked down, contemplating for a moment. "If you're tired Will, you don't have to take me, it's okay."

His eyebrows raised, baffled. "Um, how else are you gonna get home." He laughed a little, unsure of where she was getting at.

"Well…" She tapped her foot, a little nervous. "I-I could, um, stay here… If you don't mind?"

Will put the towel on the counter, his mouth open, surprised she even would suggest that. "Well, I mean… do you want to?"

She shook her head, before letting out a sigh.

"A- are you sure? And what about clothes for tomorrow and stuff?"

Emma shrugged her shoulders, examining her outfit. "Well, I didn't wear this to school, and it has to be washed anyway.""

"Right." He cut her off, and made his way over towards the hallway which had his bathroom, closet, and doorway to his bedroom. "Well, okay. I can throw your stuff in the wash, get you some clothes to sleep in… and um, I'll take that couch, if that works. I promise no funny business." He gulped as she thought about it.

"How about I just sleep on the couch, that's fine."

Will shook his head hesitantly. "Okay, if you want." He slid the closet door open, and showed Emma what was in there. Here are some wash cloths, and towels if you wanna get washed up." She stepped towards the dark closet and looked around. "I'll go get you some pajama's." Briskly, he went into his room and tore through his drawers, to find something. After about a minute he pulled out a t shirt and sweat pants.

"Is this good enough?"

Emma took them from him, and held them tightly. "Mhm, thanks, for everything." She smiled at him and he shook his head modestly. Quickly, he turned around to go into his room. Emma called his name, and he stopped.

"I love you, Will."

A grin formed on his face as he began to push his door open. "I love you too." It was the first genuine time, she had told him that first. It made him feel so good, a feeling he couldn't describe any other way. After a moment of silence they went their separate directions, to get ready for bed.

When Emma came out of the bathroom, she was Will coming towards the door.

"You can leave your clothes on top of the washer. I have to brush my teeth and all that good stuff."

"Okay." Emma took a couple steps down the hall, and put her clothes in the washer before going towards the living room. She looked on the couch to already see sheets covering and a folded blanket and pillow sitting on the edge. Smiling, she went towards the couch and sat on it comfortably. The late night news was on, recapping the events of the day. She watched, intrigued, but it could only hold her attention for so long. There, she felt safe. She wasn't alone, she was happy. Finally, she had what she wanted, and she knew it was what Will wanted too, which was made it even more satisfying.

Will spit out the last bit of water and toothpaste from his mouth, into the sink, trying not to make a mess. Casually, he walked over to the washer and opened the lid to put her clothes inside. Making sure he used just enough, he filled the cap to the detergent and poured it in, drizzling it on the clothes making sure they would be perfectly clean for Emma. When it came to her, he tried to his best to make everything just right. Anything less wouldn't be acceptable, because he cared that much. Turning the knob, the water began to fill the washer as he closed the lid quietly. Without a second to waste, he turned off the light in the hall and walked over towards the couch, only seeing Emma's red, curly hair sticking up.

"Hey Em-" He looked over the couch to see her eyes closed, and her head rested on the pillow. As he got closer, he heard her steady breathing and smiled. Carefully, he lifted up the blanket at the end of the couch and opened it all the way. Trying to be delicate, he slowly laid it on top of Emma, making sure she would be warm and comfy through the night. He heard the weather man on the television and turned it off. Before leaving, he took one last look at her and leaned over.

Softly, he kissed her on the top of her head, stroking her soft hair with his fingers.

"Goodnight Cinderella."

* * *

**Author's Note: **And that's it. A happy ending, which is what I can't wait for to happen to Wemma :D Thanks for a reading and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. See ya everybody!


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